“The State government is taking all steps to manage the epidemic. We are ready to face a third wave, if there is one,” Minister for Handloom, Textiles and Sugar Shankar Patil Munenakoppa said in Hubballi on Sunday.
He was speaking at an interaction with journalists at the Chigurupati Mallikarjun Rao Memorial Swarn Bhavan organised by the district unit of the Karnataka Union of Working Journalists.
“Some experts have said that the third wave could hit by the end of September or early October. But I feel that if people don’t follow health protocols, then such a wave can arrive sooner. Kerala and Maharashtra are witnessing a surge in positive cases. If we do not follow the rules, then we will also see a sharp rise in such cases,” he said.
He said that steps are being taken to reduce the loss of lives. The district has lost 1,284 people to the pandemic in the first two waves. “With Central aid, we are ensuring that every taluk gets an oxygen plant or a ventilator system. They will be functional in two weeks. We will not allow anyone to die for want of oxygen,” he said.
There are 750 paediatric beds to manage new cases in the district.
Development works in the twin cities are being delayed due to lack of co-ordination between officials and due to some technical reasons, he said. He said that he would convene a meeting of officers to review these works.
Earlier, he was felicitated by KUWJ members. He agreed to resolve the issue of housing faced by journalists in the twin cities. KUWJ district president Ganapati Gangolli, office-bearers Sushilendra Kundaragi, Veeresh Handigi, Gururaj Hugar, Jagadish Burlabaddi, Manjunath Jaratarghar, Vaman Bhandage and others were present.
