Category: Karnataka, Records

** Mandya gets 40 mobile oxygen concentrators

Mobile oxygen concentrators have come as a relief in the treatment of COVID-19 patients in Mandya, particularly in taluks and rural pockets where the cases have seen a spike.

Mandya is among the districts in the State that are reporting over four-digit cases since many days with sharp rise in positivity rate and the case fatality rate.

On an appeal to the State COVID-19 Task Force, Mandya got 40 mobile oxygen concentrators, which are now being used across the district for treating patients based on their case status.

** BLDE varsity V-C passes away

Mallanagouda S Biradar, Vice-Chancellor of the Vijayapura-based BLDE deemed to be university, died of COVID-19-related complications in a private hospital in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

Dr. Biradar was recovering from COVID-19 when he suffered a heart attack at his house. He was airlifted to Bengaluru two days ago. But he suffered another heart attack before admission.

** COVID-19: 150 oxygen concentrators gifted by NRI

Philanthropists and corporates have been stepping in to help the city fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

St. Martha’s Hospital received 150 sets of oxygen concentrators that were sent by Dubai-based NRI Eugene Mayne, founder and chief executive of the Tristar Group.

Mr. Mayne, a graduate of St. Joseph’s Bangalore and Bangalore University, sourced the oxygen concentrators from Europe.

** Second Navy vessel with oxygen cylinders arrives at NMPT

The second Indian Navy vessel carrying oxygen and other medical aid from Kuwait arrived at the New Mangaluru Port on Monday.

According to a press release by the New Mangaluru Port Trust, the Indian Navy vessel INS Kolkata brought two containers with 20 tonnes of oxygen, 200 oxygen cylinders packed in 10 pallets of 10 ton and four 10-litre high flow oxygen concentrators. This was sent by Government of Kuwait to the Indian Red Cross Society for use in treatment of COVID-19 patients.

** Karnataka to provide free food through Indira Canteens till May 24

The State Government on Tuesday announced distribution of free food through Indira Canteens thrice a day across the State till May 24. The announcement is expected to benefit the poor, street vendors and workers during the lockdown period.

The benefit will come through in more than 170 canteens across district and taluk centres, and through food packet distribution in more than 150 canteens and about 30 mobile canteens functioning in Bengaluru city limits. The service commenced from Tuesday in rest of the state while it will commence from Wednesday in Bengaluru.

** Ash gourd farmer in Karnataka gets helping hand from down under

Sunil Shetty from Balkunje village in Dakshina Kannada is among the few farmers who has got help from afar to ensure that his entire lot of ash gourd crop did not go a waste. A Good Samaritan from Australia saved him from financial distress.

Hotelier Sudhir Shetty, a native of Dakshina Kannada now doing business in Australia, has bought about 20 tonnes of Mr. Sunil Shetty’s produce through a friend, the Surathkal-based power system entrepreneur Kiran J. Bhandary. He asked Mr. Bhandary to distribute the ash gourd free of cost to those in need in the region. However, since offering ash gourd for free is regarded a taboo, Mr. Bhandary sold it at ₹1 a kg till Saturday.

** Karnataka private hospitals body launches Search My Bed portal

The Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes’ Association (PHANA) on Sunday launched a portal — Search My Bed — which will provide real-time information on the availability of beds in private hospitals for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

This has been a long-standing demand from citizens who were otherwise forced to call up private hospitals or knock on their doors to see if there were any beds available for patients.

** Indian biotech startup claims breakthrough in early-stage cancer detection

Tzar Labs, a molecular diagnostic company in coordination with the Mumbai-based Epigeneres Biotechnology, has claimed to have developed a breakthrough blood test for early prognosis/diagnosis of cancer.

** Texas Instruments to set up 86 ICU beds

Texas Instruments on Saturday announced setting up of 86 critical care beds in a modular ICU unit at the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases in Bengaluru. Given as part of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, the ICU unit will come up at an investment of Rs 3 crore and will be ready in 3-4 weeks.