Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (MS)

Bengaluru, Jul 11: Recently, the union health ministry had lauded the work of the Karnataka government in tracing the contacts of infected coronavirus patients in the state. In three weeks after that, the work of tracing of contacts of infected patients of the pandemic was a huge success.

On Thursday, July 9, 2,228 new cases of infection of Covid-19 were reported in the state. Out of this, the work of tracing the contacts of 1,784 cases is in progress. This means that the work of tracing the contacts has taken a backseat.

Opposition leaders and commoners are accusing the health department and district administration officials of not contacting the first and second stage contacts of the infected person. Out of the 13,089 cases reported from July 3 to July 9 in the state, the work of identifying the first and second contacts of 10,230 patients is still in progress. Last Thursday it is not known how 395 people got infected.

Tabu, wife of MLA Dinesh Gundurao had said on social media that none of the health department or BBMP officials have contacted them after their housemaid tested positive for coronavirus. She further questioned on social media that if their plight is such, being in a powerful position in the society, what would be the fate of commoners.

Commoners also have expressed their concern. A private personnel of a minister said that in the month of June, a member of a minister tested positive for coronavirus but no one visited from BBMP to check who all had come into the primary and secondary contact of the infected person.

Government sources say that their priority is to reduce the number of people dying of the infection rather than identifying the first and second contacts of the infected person and it will involve wastage of time, money and resources.

"People who were doing the work of tracing the first and second phase contacts of the infected Covid-19 patients are sick of their job. It is true that the work of tracing the contacts of the infected person has taken a backseat for two weeks. There is a plan to introduce this work at local booth level in future," said medical education minister Dr K Sudhakar.