“Hello, how can we help? Do you need an ICU bed? We will arrange one right now? What is the BU number?.... I have noted all details. This is the Chief Minister speaking...”
On Monday, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa visited the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) COVID-19 war room in East zone, accompanied by Ministers C.N. Ashwanth Narayan and Govind Karjol, and Bengaluru Central MP P.C. Mohan. He even took a call from a resident who was looking for an ICU bed. At the end of a telephone conversation that lasted no longer than two minutes, the caller was allotted an ICU bed.
Speaking to reporters after the visit, the CM said, after a lot of effort, oxygen beds were now available in the city while ICU beds were being allocated to patients based on necessity. Taking note of the reduction in number of COVID-19 cases being reported in the city, he said the situation in rural areas was far from satisfactory, given the case load.
“We are focusing on managing the pandemic in rural areas. The restrictions may inconvenience people, but citizens should cooperate. If they cooperate, the cases will definitely decrease over the next 14-15 days,” he said and called upon citizens living in small houses and in slums to get admitted in COVID-19 Care Centres.
The CCCs are well equipped and medical staff is posted round-the-clock. Around 3,000 beds were available in the 28 CCCs in Bengaluru, including 1,000 oxygenated beds. “People can just walk in to any of these centres and get admitted. We have arranged for food and other facilities,” he said.
With the number of cases coming down in the city, Mr. Yediyurappa claimed that the calls coming to war rooms had also decreased. “The East war room used to receive nearly 3,000 calls a day until last week. I am told that this has come down to around 500,” he said and added that officials had been directed to work towards further reducing the case load.
Admitting to vaccine shortage, the Chief Minister said government had urged the Centre to allocate more vaccines to Karnataka.
Responding to charges by former CM Siddaramaiah on relief packages, Mr. Yediyurappa said the relief announced was based on availability of funds with the government. “I have done my duty. We all know what Mr. Siddaramaiah had done when he was the Chief Minister,” he stated.
Acknowledging that many groups had been left out of the relief package, he said the State government would announce another package in the next 10-12 days.
