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Bengaluru, Aug 4: Deputy Chief Minister Dr.CN Ashwathnarayan instructed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner Manjunatha Prasad to set up a separate high-level committee to ascertain the exact cause of coronavirus-related deaths in the state.

He spoke to reporters after a meeting with Prasad on Tuesday.

"The committee, headed by senior officials will audit the reason for the increase in death cases. Has there been a death due to treatment delay? Or are there any shortcomings in the treatment process?" the deputy chief minister said.

He pointed out that based on the report, the committee should try to correct the deficiency and reduce the death rate.

"How many beds are in which hospital? How many patients are on a ventilator? How many have gone home from the hospital? Etc. All information needs to be updated online at the moment. He suggested that this information should be made available to the public online," Ashwaththanarayana said.

Stating that some hospitals are not giving details about the number of beds correctly, he instructed the commissioners to take legal action if differences in their data are found.

He said that there is a shortage of ASHA workers in the city and it needs to be hired immediately.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are 74,477 active COVID-19 cases in Karnataka and the death toll in the state is at 2,594.