BENGALURU: Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta on Wednesday said 3,000 beds will be readied in all 27 Covid Care Centres (CCCs) in the city by January 14. Another 3,000-5,000 beds will be added in the coming days in step-down hospitals (hotel rooms being used as CCCs in partnership with private hospitals).
Speaking to the media, Gupta said, 6,255 beds have been set aside for government-allotted Covid-19 patients through the CHBMS portal in government and private hospitals. Of these, 1,200 beds have been occupied, including 362 patients referred by the government. “Hospitalisation continues to be 1 per cent of those testing positive, while 90 per cent are in home isolation. A queue system has been arranged for allotting beds and a login has been given to each medical health officer to book beds,” he elaborated.
As on Wednesday, there are 483 containment zones in the city, with about 60- 70 per cent of them in apartment complexes. In the coming days, revised advisory and guidelines will be issued for apartment complexes, PG accommodations, hostels and residents’ welfare associations, he said.
Gupta said most containment zones are in Mahadevapura (156) Bommanahalli (114). “It has been seen that most cases are from people having domestic travel history, as strict restrictions are imposed on international travellers. Imposing restrictions and strict checks on domestic travellers is difficult at the moment. Those in home isolation must be under complete isolation for seven days after which a re-test is not required, unless symptoms prevail. People can dial 1533 (not 1912) for any query any time,” he said.
He pointed that physical triaging will be done for each patient before they are admitted to hospitals or CCCs. “In 30-40 per cent of cases, physical triaging is being done based on the condition of the patient, comorbidities, age factor, children and number of cases. Tele-traiging is also being done and, if a patient does not get a call, they can reach out to the war rooms. Physical triaging is a must before admitting patients to private hospitals or CCCs, and the report must be shared with the BBMP,” he said.
While adhering to ICMR guidelines on testing of primary contacts, the State Government is of the opinion that testing will continue and be increased as cases are rising, Gupta noted. Those having influenza-like illness (ILI), severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) or any other symptoms will be tested. In the coming days, all other high-risk sections too will be tested. The random and daily testing has increased from the earlier 30,000-50,000 to one lakh tests per day and will be further intensified if need be.
To reduce crowding in market areas, it has been decided after a meeting with police that vendors will be spread out from the core areas to nearby lanes. Revised guidelines will also be issued after consulting the traders’ associations. Also, 580 Marshals and 1,217 Home Guards have been deployed across all eight zones to enforce Covid-appropriate behaviour and assist with surveillance, the Palike chief added.