Kerala tally nears 9,000 as 608 test Covid-19 positive on Tuesday

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state on Tuesday registered a sharp rise in Covid-19 cases with 608 more persons testing positive for the virus, taking the total number of cases reported to 8,930.
The death toll also went up to 35 on the day, with the samples of Nazeer Usman Kutty (47) of Chunakkara in Alappuzha, who returned from Saudi Arabia and died on Sunday, testing positive. He was suffering from cancer.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said clusters had been found in various districts in the state and the next stage is community transmission. Stressing the need to remain vigilant against the virus spread, he said a community spread seems imminent in the state.
“When the state fought Nipah, it was just for one month. But now, the entire health machinery has been fighting the virus for the past six months,” Vijayan said.
“As per WHO, the fight will continue till this year-end. Any lapse on the part of the common man will prove too costly for the entire community,” Vijayan said.
The state had been reporting over 400 cases for the last four days and Tuesday's tally is the highest single-day spike reported so far.
Among the new cases, 201 cases were reported in Thiruvananthapuram. The total number of contact cases is 409, which included eight health workers, two CISF, two ITBP and one BSF personnel. The cases with unknown source of infection are also on the rise, with 26 such cases reported on the day.
Thiruvananthapuram (177) also had the highest number of contact cases on the day, followed by Ernakulam (58), Kozhikode (53), Thrissur (32), Malappuram (22), Kasaragod (20), Alappuzha (17), Kollam (12), Kottayam (3) and Palakkad and Kannur (1 each).
As many as 4,454 Covid patients are under treatment in the state now. Besides Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam reported 70 cases on Tuesday, Kozhikode and Malappuram 58 each, Kasaragod 44, Thrissur 42, Alappuzha 34, Palakkad 26, Kottayam 25, Kollam 23, Wayanad and Kannur 12 each and Pathanamthitta three.
In the last 24 hours, 14,227 samples were collected for tests. Till date, 4,35,043 samples have been sent for tests in the state, of which results of 7,745 are pending. As many as 1,81,847 people are under observation in the state, of whom 4,780 are admitted to designated hospitals.
The chief minister said special officers had been deputed in all districts to assist the district administration. An intensive surveillance has been launched in the coastal areas of Thiruvananthapuram and Chellanam, Aluva municipality and Keezhumadu panchayat in Ernakulam as there is a rapid rise in the case load. In Alappuzha, Kayamkulam municipality, Cherthala taluk, Arattupuzha, Nooranadau, Palamel, Thamarakkulam and Pulinkunnu have been declared containment zones.
Till date, 130 Indo-Tibetan Border Police personnel have been infected. Those who tested positive have been shifted to hospitals while the remaining personnel in the camp have been quarantined. A similar situation is prevailing in Tuneri grama panchayat in Kozhikode, where 53 persons were infected from two persons, he said.