The COVID-19 graph continued its upward trend in Tamil Nadu, with the state logging 1,636 new cases and 12 fatalities on Wednesday, taking the caseload to 8,71,440 and toll to 12,630.

According to a health department bulletin, 1,023 patients were discharged today, pushing the cumulative number to 8,49,064, leaving 9,746 active cases.

Chennai accounted for most of the new infections with 633 cases being reported, aggregating to 2,43,287 till date.

The metropolis also leads in the number of fatalities with 4,211 deaths.

With the government laying emphasis on increasing the number of RT-PCR tests, 80,634 samples were tested on Wednesday, taking the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 1,90,11,118.

Chengalpet accounted for 178 new cases today, Coimbatore 147 and Tiruvallur 86.

As many as 12 districts reported fresh infections in single digits.