Pramesh Jain
New coronavirus strain:First sealdown of apartments in Bengaluru after three of family test positive for second wave of UK Corona virus :
First multi-storey apartments in vasanthpura and in JP Nagar has been seal down by BBMP after a family returned from UK found positive for the New coronavirus strain in Bengaluru.
The residents in Vasanthapura bommanahalli protested after bbmp and police landed at the apartment complex along with ambulance to take them for quarentine after a family of three from UK returned and tested covid positive on December 18.
The BBMP quarantined the family while the residents subjected to tests few days ago as secondary and primary contacts.
However on tuesday the bbmp team along with police returned asking the residents to go along with them for institutional quarantine facility at a hotel.The residents refused stating that they have tested negative and the move is to harass them.
They demanded the authority to seal down the apartment and assures to cooperate following which the officials seal down the apartment and blocked the entry and exit of roads leading to the apartment.
Last week all residents tested and negative Morning bbmp officials along with police came to take the residents for Quarantine.Residents alleged harassment and protested that they be home quarentine.
How can we stay in hotel who will take care of our expenses and treatment, questioned the residents.Budging to their demands the bbmp,seal down the apartment for 28 days.
There are small kids and aged parents at the apartment who will take care of them and if anything happen who will take responsibility, another residents demanded.
We have not seen the family which had come from UK.They are already taken away by bbmp and quarantined.
The police have been deployed to monitor the residents.We are just carrying the government. Order and no intention to harass anyone,a senior official of the bbmp health department said.
Dr GK Suresh,Deputy Health Officer, Bommanahalli zone,who was at the apartment said,Since the apartment dwellers did not agree to be shifted out,we have sealed down the apartment.As many as 37 people are residing in 12 houses here.We will be placing barricades here.They will all be secondary contacts as they’ve all used the same lift and staircases.All their samples have been taken and have been sent to the lab for RTPCR tests he said.
Dr Vijayendra BK,Chief Health Officer,Public Health,BBMP,said,Primary contacts of Covid positive UK returnees have been asked to be shifted to institutional quarantine,that is,hotels, by the government.Till last night, there were 45 primary contacts of 16 Covid patients from UK in the city.Previously,they were in home quarantine.
The medical officer finally relented and said they’ll be kept in home quarantine itself.Two policemen will be stationed there and everyday disinfection of the apartment premises will be done.
Dr.Sudhakar,Health and Medical Education Minister told media persons that,Measures to trace contacts of 3 infected,Of the 2,406 people who came to Karnataka between December 1 – December 21,the state government has been struggling to locate nearly 570 of them who have gone missing.
We have sought the assistance of the state Home ministry and police officials to trace these 570 people who have switched off their phones and remain untraceable.Of the 1,614 passengers who came to Bengaluru,26 had tested positive for Covid-19 and of them, three have tested positive for the new UK strain of the virus.
Finally he said,Also unlike the 14 day quarantine period, which included seven days at the hospital and seven days at home, those having a new strain will be isolated for a period of 28 days at a hospital or quarantine centre where they will be monitored and treated, the minister added. Fellow passengers of those carrying the new strain have been identified and are being tested,Of the 570 missing passengers, 204 have given addresses in Bengaluru.
3 out of 26 people whose sample have been tested in NIMHANS were found positive for new variant of Corona virus.They have been admitted in the hospitals and measures are on to trace the contacts of these three people said Dr.Sudhakar
ICMR has been collecting the information of Covid positive persons who were returned from United Kingdom.This is uniform and centralised system and there is no confusion in it.There is no need for panic as much of the returnees are tested negative.We are tracing out the people who have switched off their mobile phones said, the Minister.
