Bengaluru, April 15 (IANS) Karnataka registered two Covid-19 deaths and 19 new cases, raising the state's tally to 279, said an officials, here on Wednesday.

"Patient number 279, a 80-year-old woman, resident of Hirebagewadi, Belagavi, has expired," said a health official. The deceased was a contact of 224th case and is Karnataka's 12th Covid-19 death.

Earlier on Wednesday, a 65-year-old man from Chikkaballapura died of Covid-19. He was the state's 11th such death.

From 5 p.m. Tuesday to noon Wednesday, 17 new Covid-19 cases emerged, followed by another two more in the next five hours.

Karnataka's 278th Covid-19 positive case is a 28-year-old woman from Vijayapura, a contact of 221st case.

Of the 279 cases, 187 are active and being monitored in designated hospitals, while 80 patients got discharged.

Meanwhile, the health department has ordered all the districts to consider influenza like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) cases for Covid-19 screening.

--IANS sth/pcj