Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Tuesday refuted DMK leader M.K. Stalin’s allegation that the government had provided misleading information on the availability of COVID-19 testing kits.

Addressing the media, Mr. Palaniswami said that the government had issued orders for the procurement of 15.45 lakh RT-PCR kits. A total of 2.71 lakh kits had been sent to 43 COVID-19 testing laboratories across the State, he added.

Mr. Stalin had alleged that the Chief Minister had provided misleading data on RT-PCR kits, pointing to a mismatch between the number of kits used for testing and those available with the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation.

Mr. Palaniswami said that the Opposition leader had failed to understand that a number of kits had been sent to laboratories across the State.

“There has been no wrongdoing. The government has adequate kits for COVID-19 testing,” he said.

Containing the spread

“We are testing a large number of people to contain the spread of COVID-19. All government employees, including police personnel, doctors, nurses and sanitary workers have dedicated themselves to COVID-19 containment activities. The Opposition leader has been spreading misleading information to attract publicity,” the Chief Minister added.

“Tamil Nadu has received 11.51 lakh RT-PCR kits so far. The Central government has provided 50,000 testing kits. The State has also received 53,516 kits donated by various agencies. Around 5.03 lakh RT-PCR kits have been used for testing. TNMSC has 4.59 lakh kits,” he said.

Pointing to the rise in COVID-19 cases linked to incoming passengers from other States, Mr. Palaniswami said that the State government had identified 1,620 such passengers who had tested positive for COVID-19.

“The number of positive cases among passengers shows the level of testing in other States. I am not blaming anyone. We are just doing our duty,” the Chief Minister said.

Testing ramped up

According to him, the government had ramped up testing to save the poor, who were relatively more vulnerable to the disease.

“We are testing more people and saving lives. A total of 23,495 persons have tested positive and 56% of the patients have been cured of the infection. Chennai has readied 17,500 beds for COVID-19 care. We have readied 75,000 beds for COVID-19 care across the State,” he said.

Government hospitals in the State have 2,741 ventilators, while private hospitals have 620. The State has the highest number of ventilators in the country, he said.

Stressing the need to promote the wearing of masks, he said that the government was planning to distribute masks in all ration shops. He requested residents to follow physical distancing norms, wear masks and promote hand washing to contain the spread of COVID-19.