Tests for

, police:

Saloons not exempted from lockdown

Box: Construction work, metro work can begin:

BENGALURU: Bengaluru has the least number of Covid-19 positive cases among all the major cities in the country, the health and family welfare department, Karnataka has said, citing a comparative analysis with the other cities.Bengaluru Urban and Rural districts have together reported 103 positive cases as on April 22, said S Suresh Kumar, Covid-19 spokesperson in Karnataka. “Mumbai has 3451, followed by Delhi (2081), Ahmedabad (1434), Indore (915), Pune (665), Jaipur (661), Hyderabad (498), Chennai (350) and Agra (306),” he said.However, the Karnataka capital that did not report a single Covid-19 infection for three consecutive days on Wednesday reported two positive cases. They were among the nine fresh cases of Covid-19 seen in Karnataka on the day, taking the total number of the infected in the state to 427. Five of the new cases were from Kalaburagi and two from Mysuru.Four of the infected are women. A four-month-old baby boy from Kalaburagi is among the new cases. The baby’s mother has also been found infected. Barring two men, aged 54 and 57 years, respectively from Bengaluru and Kalaburagi, with Severe Acute Respiratory Infection, the rest are all contacts of Covid-19 patients.Both Mysuru cases are linked to to the Nanjanagudu cluster.A total of 337 containment zones have been implemented in the affected districts of the state, said Suresh Kumar.Following reports that some media persons in Mumbai and Chennai have been infected with Covid-19, the state government in Karnataka has decided to conduct tests for 1000 journalists. Revising the testing protocol, Jawaid Akhtar, additional chief secretary, issued a note stating that all journalists involved in Covid-19 reporting will be eligible for testing. The testing will be done at Sir C V Raman General Hospital. Beginning from Thursday, 200 tests will be done daily between 10 am to 4 pm.That apart, all symptomatic police personnel involved in quarantine, isolation, surveillance activities of suspects and confirmed Covid-19 cases in the state are also eligible for testing, said Akhtar. It may be recalled that a policeman guarding a Madarasa in Mudhol of Bagalkot recently tested positive.Some of the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that were bought in the beginning were not up to the mark and doctors had raised concerns, earlier, said Akhtar. “ A committee was formed to look into this issue. Manufacturing companies were contacted and rectifications have been made in the PPEs supplied afterwards. There are no issues now,” he said.Answering to the queries of journalists, Suresh Kumar, said that the saloons and beauty parlours are not exempted from the lockdown till May 3. There were stay incidents of saloons remaining open on the outskirts of the city.Stating that certain construction work including the work at Metro construction sites can begin, said Suresh Kumar. “I have visited many construction sites. Labourers staying on the construction site should be utilised for work and no worker should be made to come from other places. Construction work including metro work can begin,” he said. There is permission also for transportation of cement, steel and bricks used for construction, he added.