Bengaluru accounts for 92% of Karnataka’s Omicron cases, 84% active caseload

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Bengaluru, Jan 9, 2022: The state has revealed 333 Covid-19 cases of Omicron variant with Bengaluru Urban district alone accounting for 305 (92 per cent). As many 198 cases of SA variant (60 per cent) have an international travel history while 77 cases have a history of domestic travel.

Of the 305 Omicron cases in Bengaluru, 95 are in institutional isolation while 177 are in home isolation. Only 33 have recovered as per the health department data.

Meanwhile, BBMP officials said, when the current active caseload of 32,157 in Bengaluru was examined, they did not find any link between these 305 Omicron cases and the existing clusters in the city.

While Bengaluru constitutes 92 per cent of the state’s Omicron cases and 84 per cent of the state’s active caseload, an obvious link between the two was missing.

Officials said most of the international travellers who tested positive at the airport were isolated and did not come into contact with the existing clusters.

BBMP Chief Health Officer (Public Health) Dr Balasundar S A, said, “There are around 500 cases with a Goa travel history, or they are either primary, secondary or tertiary contacts of Goa travellers.

Genome sequencing of samples of active cases may detect Omicron, but we could not find a link between the existing Omicron patients and the present active caseload, except in the case of the government hospital anaesthetist (India’s second Omicron case) who infected five others.”

As per the health department data, statewide 95 Omicron positive cases are in institutional isolation, 178 in-home isolation, 60 have recovered, 299 are fully vaccinated, and 11 are partially vaccinated. Fourteen were paediatric cases and hence not eligible for vaccination. Nine patients’ vaccination status is still being ascertained. As many as 58 patients’ travel history is also still being ascertained.