Bengaluru: Karnataka’s Health Department claims that the coronavirus situation in the state is under control, but every other day a rash of fresh positive cases belies their confidence.
On Wednesday, it’s a delivery boy from Bengaluru who is giving them the jitters. Officials in the Health Department worry he could turn out to be a superspreader because he the nature of his work puts him in contact with large numbers of people across town.
On Wednesday, Karnataka had to contend with 19 fresh cases of coronavirus. Only two of them are from Bengaluru, but one of them is the 25-year-old delivery boy from Mangammanapalya. The other is his mother.
His source of infection is his father, a worker who had a history of influenza-like illness (ILI) and was in contact with a Covid-19 positive friend from the Hongasandra cluster.
As soon as the elder man tested positive on Tuesday, health officials collected samples from his family. The results showed he had infected his wife and son. The daughter was not positive.
Now, health officials have started to prepare a list of places visited by the delivery boy and the people to whose door he delivered food. The scare in the health department is such that they are contemplating issuing a public notice with details of the delivery boy and asking his primary contacts to inform health officials and undergo self-quarantine.
Another case that is causing concern in Karnataka is that of a pregnant woman from Badami who tested positive on Sunday. She alone has infected 12 people from Bagalkot.
