BENGALURU: The state health authorities have identified 13 ‘super spreaders’ so far from whom the novel coronavirus spread to a whopping 498 people across Karnataka. As on Thursday, the state had recorded 710 Covid-19 cases, including 30 casualties, while 366 have recovered.
According to a statistical analysis done by the Department of Family and Health, as of May 7, the highest number of 76 people were infected by Patient A, an employee of the pharmaceutical company in Nanjangud near Mysuru. A 60-year-old woman from Vijayapura, a SARI patient, spread the infection to 37 people. Similarly, a 20-year-old youth from Belagavi had spread the virus to 36 others.
In many cases, the super spreaders have initially spread the infection to a maximum of 48 and a minimum of three primary contacts (level 1), about 24 secondary contacts (level 2) and none of the tertiary contacts (level 3). However, IAS officer Munish Moudgil, who is in charge of the Covid-19 War Room and contact tracing team, said these patients will not even know that they are spreading the infection and might not really be the source. Hence, a deeper analysis is required, he pointed out.
Giving a scenario, he explained, “Patient A is a young man who’s 23 years old and positive, but asymptomatic, and spreads the virus to 20 persons unknowingly. One of the infected persons is a diabetic 65-year-old person, say Patient B. The health of such a person quickly deteriorates and he shows symptoms. As he’s the first to show symptoms in the group of 20, he’s the first to be detected and the 19 others are then traced. They become contacts of Patient B and when the 19 people test positive, we conclude that Patient B is the spreader. But it is in fact Patient A who is the real spreader.”
K’taka to run 16 trains to other states
Karnataka has conveyed its intention to run 16 trains each to Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar during the eight-day period with two trains being run every day. One train will be run daily to Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. In the case of Manipur and Tripura, one train will be run each day from May 8 until all the stranded persons from the two states are transported, the letter states.Sources said two trains may also be run from Mysuru if the need arises.
Madhya Pradesh has consented to running all the eight trains while Bihar has given its consent to run eight out of the 16 special trains. However, it remains to be seen if the other states will agree as West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha have earlier shown reluctance in receiving so many migrants, said a highly placed official. The migrants will bear the ticket fare and hand it over to the state, which will pay the Bangalore Railway Division. “For all the eight trains operated, the state has already deposited the total fare paid by the migrants. It will be done so tomorrow too,” said a senior railway official.