With government doctors in Karnataka on a strike, fewer number of COVID-19 positive cases and discharges were recorded in the State on Tuesday. Many doctors across the State have decided not to update the reports till the government meets their demands.
While the doctors are treating patients and attending to other duties, they are not uploading reports related to COVID-19 and under the National Health Mission.
According to the media bulletin issued by the Department of Health and Family Welfare, nine districts did not report a single patient discharge, while no new COVID-19 positive case was reported from Bagalkot district.
According to the media bulletin, 7,406 patients were discharged and 7,576 new cases were reported in the State on Tuesday. The number of deaths due to COVID-19 too were apparently not reported accurately and only 97 deaths were recorded on Tuesday.
Sources in the department admitted that the number of discharges and positive cases were low as doctors had decided not to upload the data.
“The number of discharges and positive cases are likely to have been in the range of 8,000 to 9,000,” said an official in the department.
G.A. Srinivas, president of Karnataka Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA), said doctors had decided not to update cases till their strike was called off. They will take a final call on Friday. The office-bearers of the association had a meeting with Health and Family Welfare Minister B. Sriramalu, Medical Education Minister K. Sudhakar, and Deputy Chief Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan.
Dr. Srinivas said: “They have said they will fulfil our demands. We will discuss with our members and then take a decision.” The doctors want salaries on a par with the Central government health scheme scale and there are 4,000 doctors under KGMOA.
Dr Ashwath Narayan said the State government had decided to meet their demands “to some extent”. “We will provide them incentives and have told them to call off the strike as there is a crisis, and we are in the middle of the pandemic,” he said.
However, the testing has not declined and 68,365 tests were conducted on Tuesday. The total number of positive cases in the State so far stands at 4.75 lakh, while the number of discharges stands at 3.69 lakh. The total death toll due to COVID-19 now stands at 7,481.
