Maha continues to add to Karnataka's COVID-19 tally; biggest single-day spike of 248 cases reported
Bengaluru: Karnataka recorded a biggest single-day spike of 248 COVID-19 cases with returnees from Maharashtra continuing to add to the state's tally, taking the virus to count to 2,781 on Friday.
One casualty was reported and with this, the COVID-19 death toll has gone up to 48, the health department said.
A whopping 208 out of the fresh cases are returnees from Maharashtra.
The previous biggest single-day spike was recorded on May 23 with 216 cases, when the state had breached the 200-mark for the first time, in terms of the number of positive cases per day.
As of May 29 evening, cumulatively 2,781 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 48 deaths and 894 discharges, the health department said in its bulletin.
It said out of 1,837 active cases, 1,822 patients are in isolation at designated hospitals and are stable, while 15 are in ICU.
According to the bulletin,60 patients have been discharged today.
A 50-year-old woman from Chikkaballapura became the 48th COVID-19 related fatality in the state.
The deceased woman, a road traffic accident victim with a head injury, was admitted to a private hospital on May 24 and because of acute kidney injury and pneumonia, the patient was shifted to designated hospital, Bengaluru on May 28.
She tested positive for COVID-19 and succumbed to the virus today.
Other than returnees from Maharashtra, the 248 cases include- eight each who have come from Delhi and Rajasthan, and one each from Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu, while one is with international travel history from Ireland.
Remaining cases include- seven who are contacts of patients earlier tested positive, three with a history of influenza-like illness, and one each with a history of severe acute respiratory infection and a containment zone. The contact history of eight others are still being traced.
Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Raichur accounted for 62, followed by Kalaburagi 61, Yadgir 60, Udupi 15, Bengaluru urban 12, Ballari nine, Chikkaballapura five, four each from Davangere, Hassan and Vijayapura, two each from Mandya, Mysuru, Tumakuru and Chikkamagaluru, and one each from Dharwad, Chitradurga, Shivamogga and Bengaluru rural.
Bengaluru Urban district still tops the list of positive cases, with a total of 303 infections, followed by Mandya 257 and Kalaburagi 251.
Among discharges too Bengaluru urban tops the list with a total of 151 discharges, followed by Belagavi 92 and Mysuru 89.
A total of 2,64,489 samples have been tested, of which 12,411 were tested on Friday alone.
According to the bulletin, 2,58,130 samples have reported as negative, 12,015 alone on Friday.
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Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
