TN reports 945 Covid-19 cases, 8 deaths, collectors told to keep beds ready

CHENNAI: Covid-19 cases in Tamil Nadu once again inched towards 1,000 on Wednesday as the State reported 945 cases and eight deaths. This takes the tally to 8,62,374 and toll to 12,564. District collectors have been told to keep beds in Covid Care Centres as a preparatory measure amid the surge, Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan said, adding that the Health Department has requested the Union Government to open up vaccination for people below 60 years of age as well as to all persons with comorbid conditions

The State reported 910 cases on January 2 and since then the number of new cases was decreasing steadily till two weeks ago when TN was reporting around 400 new cases a day. The number of active cases has also been on the rise going from 4,009 on March 1 to 5,811 on Wednesday.

With the number of active cases in Chennai standing at 2,277, the Health Department on Wednesday opened up an additional 120-bed ward in Tower-III of Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.
Speaking to reporters after inspecting the ward, Radhakrishnan said, all districts collectors had been instructed to keep Covid Care Centres ready, and in Athipattu a Covid Care Centre with a bed capacity of 4,000-5,000 beds capacity is still maintained for Chennai. Such centres will be kept readyin other districts as well.

Noting that 19 States, including TN, are seeing a rise in Covid cases, he attributed the spike in February to weddings, birthday functions, and death rituals. This month, political meetings have also contributed to the rise as people attend those meetings without face masks. “The Covid protocols are the same for everyone and SOPs should be followed in any meetings,” he added.

It may be noted that Chief Secretary Rajeev Ranjan on Tuesday ordered that approval for poll campaigns, religious and cultural events should be obtained from the concerned departments with the condition that Covid protocol be strictly followed. 

Radhakrishnan said that the districts posing a challenge are Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Coimbatore, Tirupur and Thanjavur. People in districts where cases are less also should be cautious and follow standard operating procedures, he stressed.

The Health Secretary said two weeks ago the State was reporting 400 cases but now it is reporting over 900 cases. "Cases are increasing and people should not let down their guard. They should wear face masks. In schools, banks, hotels, hostels, and also in all religious meetings, markets and public transport, Covid protocol should be followed," Radhakrishnan said

In Chennai, cases are being reporting from Teynampet, Ambattur, Anna Nagar, Valasaravakkam and Adyar zones, he said. The transmission is slow in places where earlier cases were reported, but it is quicker in places such as Madipakkam and a few streets in T Nagar where there were no cases earlier, said Radhakrishnan.

Flouting Covid protocols was the reason for cases at a private bank in Mylapore and also at a hostel in Villivakkam. In Thanjvur 57 students at a school tested positive as protocol was flouted, he added.

Meanwhile, Chennai reported 395 cases on Wednesday while its neighbouring districts of Chengalpattu, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram reported 103, 56 and 30 cases respectively. Coimbatore, too, saw a surge, reporting 107 cases on the day. Meanwhile, Perambalur reported zero cases, and 17 other districts reported less than 10 new cases.

Seven passengers, three each from West Bengal and Kerala and one from Bihar, who travelled by road, were among those to test positive.

According to the media bulletin issued by the Directorate of Public Health, among the deceased one did not have any comorbid conditions. The patient was a 62-year-old woman from Chennai was was admitted in the Government Corona Hospital in Guindy at 5.21pm on March 11. She tested positive for Covid on March 12 and died the same day at 04.30pm due to Severe COVID pneumonia/respiratory failure. 

The State also vaccinated over one lakh people for the second consecutive day. According to the Health Department data, 1,11,382 people were vaccinated on Wednesday, including 43,543 people above 60 years, 36,582 in the 45-59 age group, 18,643 frontline workers and 12,614 healthcare workers. Till date the State has vaccinated 17,20,508 people.