Union Health Ministry identifies 8 Karnataka districts including DK as COVID-19 hotspots

Mandya, Jul 23: Upset over contracting Covid 19, a 55-year-old man, ended his life by hanging himself, at the designated Covid hospital, in Mandya, on Wednesday night.

The deceased patient is from Kandegala village, Malvalli taluk, Mandya district. He was ailing from renal problems and was under treatment. 

However, he contracted the virus and tested positive for Covid-19. Upset over this, he ended his life by hanging himself on the window grill, in the hospital bathroom, midnight. The incident came to light when other patients went to the toilet.

His last rites were conducted as per the designated Covid-19 protocol, on Thursday, said District Health Officer Dr H P Manchegowda.

Bengaluru, Jul 19: Three legislators of the opposition Congress in Karnataka, including 2 MLAs and 1 MLC tested positive for coronavirus and are under treatment, a party official said on Saturday.

"Our Bailhongal MLA Mahantesh Koujalgi in Belagavi district and Humnabad MLA Rajashekhar Patil and his MLC brother Chandrashekhar Patil in Bidar district tested positive for the infection and are under treatment at designated hospitals," party spokesman Ravi Gowda told media persons in Bangaluru.

Koujalgi's swab sample was taken on Friday after he showed signs of illness and its result turned positive earlier in the day.

"As Koujalgi attended a review meeting at Bailhongal, about 20 officials who participated in the meeting have been home quarantined," said Gowda.

Koujalgi is the second lawmaker in the state's northwest region to test positive after BJP's Belagavi North assembly segment MLA Anik Benake tested positive for the virus on July 15.

"Patil brothers were in self quarantine after meeting BJP's Bidar Lok Sabha member Bhagwanth Khuba, who tested positive on Wednesday. Their tests also showed they were infected with the virus," Gowda said.

Congress MLC Sandesh Nagaraj, who tested positive on Friday, is under treatment at a private hospital in Mysuru.

Dakshina Kannada district Youth Congress president Mithun Rai is in institutional quarantine in Bengaluru after he tested positive for the infection.

Mangaluru, May 28: A pregnant woman who returned from Dubai in a repatriation flight suffered miscarriage after she was allegedly denied entry to her apartment flat and also refused proper treatment in the institutional quarantine.

Fathima was put in a paid quarantine facility after she returned on May 12 flight for her first delivery.

On the second day of her return, she tested negative for Covid-19 in the first test. As per SOP (Standard operating procedures) for pregnant women, she was ready to shift to her apartment, Shivdeep Residency, located at Shivbhag in the city for home quarantine.

However, the members of the Resident Welfare Association of the apartment who got a whiff of her arrival, called an emergency meeting the previous night and reportedly informed the pregnant woman that her entry to the flat would put other residents in trouble and suggested that she stay away.

Sources said the RWA consists of some serving and retired police officials.

With no other go, the woman continued in the paid quarantine.

Treatment for a pregnant woman?

Fathima's father-in-law Azeez Bastikar said the doctors who attended her during the quarantine did not provide proper healthcare required for a pregnant woman and also refused to touch her, out of fear.

Many a time, they did not even check her BP, saying that they ‘forgot to bring the kit’. When her situation worsened, the family members contacted several hospitals in the city but all of them allegedly refused to admit her, fearing the sealing down of the hospital in case she tests positive on the 14th day COVID test.

Finally, the six and half months pregnant woman was shifted to a clinic on Wednesday after her 14th day test had turned negative.

The doctors who checked her found out that she had suffered a miscarriage and operated on her to remove the stillborn. The doctors said further delay would have costed the woman her life.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Azeez Bastikar approached Deputy Commissioner Sindhu B Rupesh, seeking action against the doctors and hospitals who denied treatment and the RWA who refused her entry to the apartment.

Stating that the ill-treatment meted out to her daughter-in-law by doctors and others added to her trauma resulting in the miscarriage, he appealed to the authorities to ensure that no one else is treated in a similar manner.

He said that Fathima and her husband live in Dubai and that she came to India for a safe delivery as the situation was critical in Dubai.

The paid quarantine facility where she had to continue after RWA denied her access, charged her Rs 60,000 for her stay.

Meanwhile, the MCC commissioner Ajith Kumar Hegde on Thursday issued a notice to Shivdeep Apartment for refusing Fathima's entry.

The apartment has to respond within three days, failing which legal action will be initiated against it.