Coronavirus double mutant strain not yet confirmed in Tamil Nadu: Health Secretary

Tamil Nadu Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan said that the double mutant strain of Coronavirus has not been confirmed in Tamil Nadu. He was speaking to the media on Friday morning on the updates on the infection in the state and the measures that are being taken to contain the spread of the virus, which is increasing on a daily basis in Tamil Nadu.

Radhakrishnan said that while coronavirus spread has not changed, people’s behaviour has changed, leading to an increase in the number of new cases. “People are wearing masks when they see officials. I am asking the people, are we coronavirus? We are not coronavirus. The virus is amongst us and is roaming without the mask. To protect from it, you need to wear masks,” he said. Adding that those who were diagnosed with the UK and the South African strain of coronavirus have recovered completely, Radhakrishnan said, “There is no link between these foreign strains and the increase in cases in Tamil Nadu. Also, double mutant strain has not been confirmed so far in Tamil Nadu.”

He added that 512 streets in Tamil Nadu are under micro-containment restrictions due to three or more cases of COVID-19. “We have enough beds in hospitals ready to treat patients confirmed of COVID. Doctors have told people to avoid taking tablets like Dolo on their own….Tamil Nadu has 17 lakh doses of vaccines in hand at present and 10 lakh more doses are yet to be received,” he added.

Tamil Nadu confirmed 1,779 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday. The number of persons currently being treated for COVID in the state is 10,487. Eleven deaths were also reported by the state government on Thursday. Of the new cases, Chennai accounted for 664 and Chengalpattu district accounted for 162 cases. Coimbatore and Thanjavur reported 153 and 108 new cases of COVID on Thursday. Tamil Nadu tested 81,103 samples belonging to 80,761 persons on Thursday.