Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Tuesday told a central team that there was no community transmission of COVID-19 in the state and that the pandemic has not yet reached the third stage.

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa held discussions with the team, comprising Arti Ahuja, Additional Secretary- Health and Family Welfare and P Raveendran, Director-Emergency Medical Relief (EMR) on the COVID-19 situation in the state.

Senior ministers and government officials were present at the meeting.

"There is no community spread so far, I am making it very clear. We are still in between the second and the third stage, we haven't reached the third stage yet," Health Minister B Sriramulu said.

The central team was informed of this, had accepted it and advised the government to ensure that the state does not reach the third stage, he said.

As of July 6 evening, cumulatively 25,317 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 401 deaths and 10,527 discharges.

Sriramulu said the team discussed COVID-19 management in the state and suggested that more testing be done at the containment zones.

The team, which is on a two day visit to the state, is scheduled to visit various containment zones, COVID care centres, war rooms, hospitals and meet the Chief Minister once again.

Medical Education Minister Sudhakar said the team asked the state government to reduce the death rate due to COVID-19 to below one per cent.

"Death rate in the world is more than 4.5 per cent,in the country it is 2.5 per cent, while in Karnataka it is only 1.56 per cent and this should be brought below one per cent.

All information and cooperation for this..the team said they were ready to extend," he said.

The team also expressed satisfaction with various steps taken to contain the virus and said some of these have been taken as a model by other states like tele-ICU, door to door campaign to find ILI cases, increase in testing labs, quarantine, death audit, among others, he added.

Sudhakar said, along with strict measures in containment zones and more testing there, the team stressed on care and testing of the elderly, children and those with comorbidities and also ramping up tests at crowded places and slums.

"We brought to the notice of the team that some private labs and labs at medical colleges have not been testing to their capacity, despite notices from the state government and that ICMR and MCI will have to take action against them," he said.