Coronavirus: Over 3,000 COVID-19 positive patients untraceable in Bengaluru amid huge spike

 More than 3,000 people who tested positive for coronavirus have gone missing in Karnataka’s capital and the health authorities in the state are unable to trace them.  

Bengaluru: As many as 3,338 people infected with the novel coronavirus are untraceable in Bengaluru and a search is underway to trace them, authorities have said. The number accounts for 7% of total coronavirus positive people in the city.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has said that many patients disappeared soon after they were tested positive.

BBMP commissioner N Manjunath Prasad on Sunday said as many as 3,338 people whose samples at the labs returned positive have gone missing. Some provided wrong mobile numbers and addresses while getting tested, he added.

"From the beginning till now, there have been 3,338 people whose samples at the labs returned positive but they are untraceable. We are working on addressing the issue” the Times of India quoted the BBMP commissioner as saying.

"We have to ensure that all the infected persons have to be traced and quarantined. We have prioritised it so that they could be traced and isolated," said the deputy chief minister Dr Ashwath Narayan.

The development has become a cause of concern as the city accounts for nearly half of all cases reported in Karnataka, India's fourth worst-hit state.

Reacting to the debacle, authorities have decided to ask for government-issued identity cards and verify mobile numbers before collecting samples for coronavirus tests.

Also watch: We know India is battling enemies like the dreaded Covid-19 & a conniving China. But there is a bigger enemy, and that one lies within.

Find out more in #TheNewsableDecipher