Three new deaths in Karnataka just as medical residents get restless

Bengaluru: There are signs of trouble brewing in Karnataka with medical residents in the state demanding a raise in pay just as the coronavirus numbers are beginning to accelerate again.

Both positive cases and deaths have been by and large reined in in Karnataka in the past fortnight, but since Friday, they started to move again.

The Covid-19 death toll spurted by three in the past 24 hours, now reaching 25. The total number of corona positive cases too has begun accelerating towards the 600 mark with nine fresh cases being reported since Friday evening. The tally now stands at 598.

In the meantime the Karnataka Association of Resident Doctors has shot of a statement demanding that their pay be raised match the guidelines set by the Medical Council of India.

"Postgraduate and superspeciality residents, house surgeons are the backbone of medical colleges run by the government in Karnataka. These doctors have been working tirelessly day and night to give utmost possible medical care on the frontline of the COVID 19 pandemic,” the statement reminded chief minister B S Yediyurappa.

Threatening escalation of their demand if it was not met, the statement said "The residents in Karnataka are the lowest paid in the country. Multiple representations have been made to the chief minister, minister for medical education, directorate of medical education since the past two years but in vain. It is injustice to underpay the hard working residents.

Karnataka’s numbers have been significantly lower than in neighbouring Telangana and Maharashtra. But the spurt of three deaths, and nine new cases just as relaxations of lockdown rules are poised to kick in from May 4 puts a question mark on the state’s corona strategy from hereon.

The three deaths reported since Friday included included a 69-year-male resident of Davanagere who was admitted in hospital on April 28 with a history of severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) and a past history of diabetes heart disease. He died on Friday.

Another death was of an 82-year-old male resident of Bidar, who was admitted to hospital on April 27 evening SARI. He died the next day and tests on his serum found him to have been positive for Covid-19.

The third death was of a 63-year-male resident of Bangalore Urban district with diabetes, hypertension, hypothyroidism and renal failure. He had been on dialysis. His death was reported on Saturday morning.