Karnataka reports five more cases of Omicron variant, state's tally rises to 19

File Photo (Reuters)

New Delhi: Karnataka reported five more cases of the Omicron variant, state's health minister Dr Sudhakar K informed on Monday (December 20, 2021) morning. While two cases of the new COVID-19 variant were reported in Udupi, three other infections were recorded in Mangaluru, Dharwad and Bhadravathi.

With this, Karnataka's tally of Omicron cases has now increased to 19.

Five cases of Omicron have been confirmed on Dec 19th:
Dharwad: 54 yr male
 Bhadravathi: 20 yr female
 Udupi: 82 yr male and 73 yr female
 Mangaluru: 19 yr female#Omicronindia #Covid_19 @BSBommai — Dr Sudhakar K (@mla_sudhakar) December 20, 2021

According to the Commissionerate of Health and Family Welfare, the Government of Karnataka, all five patients have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

In Udupi, the tests of the 82-year-old man and a 73-year-old woman were conducted after an 11-year old member of the family was tested positive. Both of them are currently not showing any COVID-19 symptoms.

In Dharwad, the 54-year-old woman is currently healthy, relieved from symptoms and is under home isolation. Her four primary and 133 secondary contacts have also been tested and are negative.

The 20-year old in Bhadravathi is currently in a hostel and her 218 primary and secondary contacts have been tested, of which, 26 were found to be COVID-19 positive and their samples have now been sent for whole genome sequencing.

The teenager patient in Mangalore is currently asymptomatic and her vitals are stable. 335 of her primary and secondary contacts have been tested, of which, 18 were found positive. The samples of the infected contacts have been sent for genome sequencing.

Karnataka, notably, was the first state in India to report cases of the highly mutated version of coronavirus.