INDIA has recorded its first death due to coronavirus in the Southern Indian state of Karnataka.
The victim, a 76-year-old man who passed away on Tuesday, was tested positive for the coronavirus, the Karnataka health department confirmed the same on Thursday (12).
"The 76-year-old man from Kalaburagi who passed away and was a suspected COVID-19 patient has been Confirmed for COVID 19. The necessary contact tracing, isolation and other measures as per protocol are being carried out. Telangana government has also been informed since he went to a private hospital there,” the Karnataka health department stated.
The 76-year-old man had returned from Saudi Arabia on February 29. He had arrived in Hyderabad and then travelled to Kalaburagi.
On March 5, he was admitted to the out-patient department of a private hospital in Kalaburagi.
The following day he was moved as in-patient in the same hospital. He was then shifted to a Hyderabad hospital, over 200 kilometres away, as his condition worsened.
His condition deteriorated and his family brought him back to Kalaburgi on March 9. He was declared brought dead at the Gulbarga Institute of Medical Sciences.
His samples were collected for testing in Kalaburagi on March 10 and sent to Bengaluru’s lab for testing via courier.
Health officials had stated that he had other conditions like asthma and blood pressure as well.
The Karnataka government has till now confirmed five other cases in the state.
A Bengaluru Dell employee who returned from Austin in America via New York and Texas was the first person to be confirmed in the state. Later, his wife and 13-year-old daughter too were tested positive.
Another techie who had travelled from US to Bengaluru via London, was tested positive next.
The number of cases in India have risen to 79. Fresh cases were reported in Kerala and Maharashtra.
Zia Yusuf
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