Since the beginning of July, the number of people contracting COVID-19 in Bengaluru’s central business district has rapidly increased. The area, which comes under the Shantala Nagar ward, saw 235 patients contracting the novel coronavirus between July 1 and 6, according to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike’s (BBMP) war room data.
The highest number of cases were reported on July 3, with 62 cases in Shantala Nagar alone. Speaking to TNM, Shantala Nagar corporator MB Dwarakanath said that the rise in the number of cases is due to four clusters within the ward. These include the Police quarters in Austin Town, Vittal Mallya Road, St Philomena’s Hospital and Xavier Layout.
The first case in the ward was reported in Austin Town’s YG Palya, where a constable tested positive earlier in June. Following this, eight of his family members tested positive too, said Dr Srinivas, BBMP surveillance officer for Shantala Nagar.
Soon after this, in late June, a senior consulting doctor at St Philomena’s Hospital became a primary contact after his mother got COVID-19. She was a patient with Severe Acute Respiratory Illness and was admitted to St Philomena’s for treatment. “Doctors and nurses were providing extra care to the patient as she was the aged mother of a colleague. After that, 15 people, including doctors, nurses and hospital staff at St Philomena’s, tested positive,” Dr Srinivas added.
The third cluster of patients include two families residing on Vittal Mallya Road. After one family member from each household tested positive, Dr Srinivas said all other family members got COVID-19 too.
“This was around 11 people. There is another cluster in Xavier Layout, where a man tested positive and subsequently his family members too did. What is happening in Shantala Nagar is that a lot of primary contacts of patients in these four clusters have contracted the disease,” Dr Srinivas added.
Corporator Dwarakanath said that the reason the cases in Shantala Nagar, which includes areas in CBD including Brigade Road, MG Road, Residency Road and Church Street, are increasing is due to the increased movement of people after lockdown restrictions were eased.
“A lot of people keep coming to CBD; many migrants in white collar jobs have also returned from other states. There are people coming in to visit these areas from different parts of the city too. Naturally, the movement is higher in these areas. I will meet people from various associations and take their suggestions on how to curb the spread,” he added.