Bengaluru, Twenty new Covid-19 positive cases, including 13 from Badami in Bagalkote, has raised Karnataka's tally to 693, according to an official here on Wednesday. "As of 5 p.m. on Wednesday, cumulatively 693 Covid-19 cases have been confirmed in the state. It includes 29 deaths and 354 discharges," said a health official.

In the past 24 hours, 23 patients got discharged. 303 are isolated at the designated hospitals and are stable, except six in ICU.

After recording 19 cases in 19 hours, only one more case showed up in the state in the next five hours of the past 24 hours.

After two days of Covid-19 cases spike in Davangere, Badami, 451 km northwest of Bengaluru, emerged as the new hotspot with 13 cases.

All the 13 Badami cases were contacts of case number 607, a 23-year-old woman from the same place who was admitted to a Dharwad hospital and was also being investigated for Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI).

On adding the new cases, Bagalkote is currently battling 48 patients, breaching Davangere's 44 cases but has recorded only one death hitherto. Of these, 30 are active and 17 discharged.

No new Covid-19 death has surfaced in the past 24 hours.

Other cases emerged from Dakshina Kannada 3, Bengaluru Urban 2 and Vijayapura and Kalaburagi 1. Among the new cases, 10 are men and 10 women, including five children below 16.

Except one case with Influenza Like Illness (ILI), all others were contacts of earlier cases.

Meanwhile, Chief Secretary T.M. Vijay Bhaskar clarified that only those hotels and restaurants supplying food to hostels, health facilities, police, government officers, health workers, quarantine facilities and stranded travellers were allowed to function.

Others can only offer takeaway and home delivery services.