Nearly 50% of Bengaluru may have met a COVID-19 positive person

BENGALURU: A research conducted by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBPM) has identified 48.5 lakh people in the city who have come in contact with COVID-19 patients as of May 1. The contact tracing conducted by the municipal body indicates that half of the city’s population may already have come in contact with a COVID-19 positive person.

According to the survey, of the 48.5 lakh contacts, more than 23.2 lakh were primary and 25.3 lakh were secondary contacts. However, Karnataka’s war room data states that the contact tracing did not take place for as much as 40 per cent of the cases in Bengaluru in the week ending with April 25. Hence, BBPM believe that there is a possibility that more numbers might be added to the list of primary and secondary contacts in the coming weeks.

Zone-wise analysis has been done after the research to ensure that primary contacts be tested on priority basis to curb the surge of second wave of coronavirus in the city.  As of May 1, more than 2.1 lakh people were under active quarantine within BBMP limits. Additionally, 9000 people are listed to be under quarantine outside the BBMP limits but within the city’s boundaries. Presently, Bengaluru South has the most number of people under active quarantine, followed by the east zone.