Spike in COVID-19 cases in Bengaluru: CM directs strict enforcement of lockdown measures
Bengaluru: Concerned over the increase in COVID-19 cases in the city, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Monday directed officials to implement lockdown measures strictly in the clusters which have reported more number of infections.
Yediyurappa held a meeting with Ministers and senior officials regarding containing COVID-19 in Bengaluru and said it can be achieved only if preventive measures are implemented strictly and asked the officials to work in this direction.
"Lockdown shall be implemented strictly in the clusters which reported more cases, especially, K.R. Market and surrounding areas such as Siddapura, VV Puram, Kalasipalya, etc. It was decided to seal the adjoining streets, where the cases are reported, a release from the Chief Minister's office said.
Stringent action would be taken against those who violate quarantine norms and FIR would be filed if necessary, it said.
Till Sunday evening, the state capital has reported 1,272 cases of COVID-19, including 64 deaths and 411 discharges. On Sunday, as many as 196 fresh cases were recorded.
Officers were directed to ensure hygiene and provide other basic amenities to the people who were quarantined in the social welfare department's hostels and other government institutions.
"COVID-19 should be contained without affecting the economic activities in Bengaluru, which resumed recently," the Chief Minister said.
Noting that booth-level officers and volunteers were working to trace contacts and monitor quarantined persons, he said the COVID war room shall have real-time information on the availability of beds in various designated hospitals and facilitate treatment to the infected without loss of time.
A bulletin from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the city civic body, said there were 298 active containment zones in the city.
BBMP Commissioner B H Anil Kumar along with the Chamarajpet Congress MLA B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan visited a few slum areas in the city to take stock of the COVID-19 situation, officials said.
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Hospital wall collapse: CM orders suspension of executive engineer; kin of victims get solatium
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday ordered the immediate suspension of an executive engineer for the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital wall collapse that claimed the lives of seven people, during a high-level review meeting at Vidhana Soudha.
A compensation of Rs 5 lakh, as announced by the CM Siddaramaiah, was distributed to the families of seven victims who lost their lives in the tragedy on Wednesday evening, which occurred due to heavy downpour with gusty winds and hailstorm.
The meeting of municipal commissioners of the five corporations, chaired by the chief minister and attended by Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, focused on fixing accountability and examining lapses that led to the tragedy.
"Why was soil dumped in a way that damaged the wall? Why did you not monitor this?" Siddaramaiah asked, pulling up hospital authorities during the meeting.
A statement from the chief minister's office said that the CM ordered the immediate suspension of the executive engineer of the Karnataka Health Systems Development Project (KHSDP).
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He also questioned the hospital authorities, asking why they failed to monitor the dumping of soil that weakened the structure.
The chief minister directed that a notice be issued to the head of the Hospital.
During the meeting, Siddaramaiah said the rains had caused extensive damage in the city, with over 250 trees uprooted.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to take necessary measures before the onset of the monsoon to avoid untoward incidents.
Commissioners of all five municipal zones in Bengaluru have been asked to take precautionary steps, including trimming dry and dangerous tree branches, the CMO said.
Siddaramaiah also directed them to get the silt cleared from stormwater drains to prevent flooding, and that immediate action be taken to remove debris and fallen branches from roads.
Further, he instructed that barricades be placed at underpasses where water stagnates and restricts public movement.
The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Chief Commissioner M Maheshwar Rao said in a statement that Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad distributed compensation cheques of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the deceased on Thursday.
Seven people, including a six-year-old girl, were killed and seven others injured when the compound wall collapsed amid heavy rain, strong winds and a hailstorm on Wednesday evening.
Police said the victims, comprising three from Bengaluru, two from Kerala on a study tour and one each from Uttar Pradesh and Assam, had taken shelter near the wall when it suddenly gave way, trapping them under the debris.
The chief minister questioned officials over the dumping of soil near the wall despite knowing it could weaken the structure, and directed that a notice be issued to the head of Bowring Hospital.
Siddaramaiah, who had visited the spot soon after the incident along with senior officials, reviewed the situation and ordered a detailed probe into the collapse.
