TN’s highest spike takes cases past 21k

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu on Saturday reported a record 938 new cases of Covid-19 over the past 24 hours, taking the total tally to 21,184. Deaths of four men and two women were also reported, taking the total toll to 160 in the state.

Of the 938 new cases, 82 were returnees from other states and a foreign country, while Chennai alone accounted for 616 cases. Among those who tested positive were three returnees from Kuwait and 46 who had travelled from Maharashtra, a health department bulletin said.

At present, the active cases stood at 9,021 and as many as 687 were discharged on Saturday. So far, 12,000 have recovered in the state. The youngest among those who died was a 37-year-old woman, admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, while the others included a 70-year old man, who had co-morbidities like hypertension, the bulletin said.

Till date, 89 people from abroad and 195 passengers from other states, under railway quarantine, have tested positive.

Chennai continued to report the highest cases in the state with 13,980 positive cases, of which 7,321 were discharged following recovery and 6,539 were active.

Till date, 479,155 samples have been tested in 43 government and 29 private labs across Tamil Nadu.A private lab at Chengelpet was approved for testing on Saturday, the bulletin said.

Tamil Nadu Health Minister C Vijayabaskar, warned private hospitals against fleecing covid patients and announced that a rate card for charging people battling the disease in private health facilities will be fixed. HTC