Lockdown in Karnataka: CM Yediyurappa makes BIG announcement

As the COVID-19 caseload is on a continuous rise in Karnataka, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Friday (May 7) hinted at a complete lockdown in the state. As people have not been following COVID protocols leading to a rise in cases, a full lockdown might have to be imposed, the Chief Minister said. 

CM Yediyurappa said the state government would decide on a complete lockdown in Karnataka in two days. CM Yediyurappa said, "People are not following rules. It might be inevitable to go in for a complete lockdown in Karnataka. We will decide in two days."

He has also urged people not to bring COVID-19 patients to his residence or the Vidhan Soudha saying, "Our officials will act and help immediately. I understand the problem of people; we are with you. Please don't come with patients to CMs residence or Vidhan Soudha." On Thursday, two such instances took place where patients came to CMs residence and Vidhan Soudha, seeking help to get beds.

India on Friday recorded 414,433 fresh cases of COVID-19 taking its cumulative caseload to 21,485,285. This is the second consecutive day that India has registered over four lakh cases. In another new record, India reported 3,915 deaths in a single day. India now has 3.65 million active cases. 

The top five states which have registered maximum COVID-19 cases are Maharashtra with 62,194 cases, followed by Karnataka with 49,058 cases, Kerala with 42,464 cases, Uttar Pradesh with 26,622 cases, and Tamil Nadu with 24,898 cases. About 49.55% of the new cases are reported from these five states, with Maharashtra alone responsible for 15.02% of the new cases.

Maximum casualties were reported in Maharashtra (853), followed by Uttar Pradesh with 350 daily deaths.