Tamil Nadu on Thursday recorded 776 cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths even as Chennai’s tally continued to mount, with 567 persons testing positive for the virus.

The fresh cases took the State’s COVID-19 case load to 13,967*.

The new patients included 297 women. The influx of people from abroad and other States continued to pose a challenge for the State government, with 87 of them testing positive on Thursday, according to Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar. The State’s recovery rate stands at 44%. With the discharge of another 400 patients, a total of 6,282 persons have been sent home from hospitals. T.N. currently has 7,588 active cases. With the death of three patients at government hospitals and four at private facilities, the toll has gone up to 94. Six of the deceased had diabetes, of which four had both diabetes and hypertension, Dr. Vijayabaskar said. A combination of age, co-morbidities and the adverse impact of COVID-19 was causing fatalities, he added.

A 62-year-old man died at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital on May 20 due to respiratory failure, acute respiratory distress syndrome and pneumonia, while a 50-year-old man, a diabetic, died at the Government Kilpauk Medical College Hospital due to respiratory failure and acute respiratory distress syndrome.

A 58-year-old woman, who was admitted to the Government Stanley Medical College Hospital, died on Wednesday due to sepsis, septic shock, multi-organ dysfunction syndrome, diabetes and systemic hypertension. A 60-year-old man died at a private hospital on May 19 due to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome and community-acquired pneumonia, while a 47-year-old male died at a private hospital due to viral pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome.

A 60-year-old man, who was suffering from hypothyroidism and chronic kidney disease, died at a private hospital due to acute respiratory distress syndrome with pneumonia on May 20 and an 80-year-old man with diabetes, hypertension, Crohn’s disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease died at a private hospital due to acute respiratory distress syndrome, pneumonia and multi-organ failure.

The Minister said that the State has been consistently maintaining a mortality rate of 0.7%, one of the lowest in the country.“We have formed 12 committees for each co-morbid condition such as renal disease, cancer, diabetes and hypertension, with doctors from the government and private sector,” he said. This was for cocooning the vulnerable groups. “We will inform them on what they should do and urge them to follow doctors’ advice. Doctors should provide protocol-based care for them. This is to prevent deaths despite the co-morbidities,” he added.

With 567 new cases, Chennai’s COVID-19 cases climbed to 8,795. Tiruvallur added another 42 new cases, taking its total to 636. There were 34 cases in Chengalpattu, 13 in Kancheepuram, five each in Tenkasi and Thoothukudi, four each in Ranipet and Villupuram, three each in Theni and Tiruvannamalai, two in Madurai, and one each in Dindigul, Kallakurichi, Karur, Sivaganga, Thanjavur, Tirupattur and Vellore.

Six persons, who returned from Chicago, and one person, who returned from Muscat, tested positive during the exit test. One person, who returned from the Maldives, has also tested positive for COVID-19.

Besides, 76 persons, who returned from Maharashtra, tested positive in various districts. This included 17 of them in Thoothukudi, 16 in Madurai, 11 in Tirunelveli, eight in Virudhunagar, seven in Kallakurichi, four in Dindigul, three each in Pudukottai and Tenkasi, two each in Thanjavur and Tiruvannamalai, and one in Theni. One person, who returned from Kerala, tested positive in Cuddalore, while another person tested positive in Sivaganga on returning from West Bengal. Another person, who returned from Delhi, tested positive in Madurai.

“Districts such as Erode, Tiruppur, Coimbatore, Tiruvarur and Sivaganga had no cases within the district for nearly 28 days. The concerned district administrations had strengthened containment measures to control disease transmission. Now, persons are returning from other States to their native districts using e-passes. We are screening them at the checkposts and isolating them immediately,” the Minister said.

He noted that people were entering the State in cars and two-wheelers too. It is a challenge for the government that persons returning from places such as Dharavi in Mumbai are testing for the infection, he said, adding: “Nevertheless, the concerned district administrations are conducting screening at check posts to prevent spread of infection to their families.”

Along with 53 children aged 0 to 12, 78 persons aged above 60 tested positive for COVID-19.

The Minister said that 25 persons, who had arrived by flights to Chennai and Tiruchi airports and were kept under quarantine, tested positive after seven days during the exit screening. “These persons had no symptoms, and had tested negative earlier. The exit screening is conducted before they are sent home,” he said.

He added that 178 were brought in a rescue flight of the Indian Air Force and quarantined. Of them, 23 persons tested positive during entry screening.

A total of 12,464 samples were tested on Thursday, taking the total number of samples tested so far to 3,72,532. Dr. Vijayabaskar said Tamil Nadu accounted for 15% of the tests conducted in the country.

Three more laboratories were approved in the State — Central Leather Research Institute, Chennai, Apollo Speciality Hospitals, Madurai and Orbito Asia Diagnostic, Coimbatore. With this, there are 66 testing facilities in the State. The Minister added that facilities to screen persons had been improved at medical college hospitals and screening centres of the Chennai Corporation. “We have posted additional medical teams to reduce the waiting period for persons. We have mobile X-ray units and laboratories set up at these places,” he said.

(*This is inclusive of two deaths cross-notified to other States and one patient who died after testing negative for the infection)