After staying relatively low for two days, Tamil Nadu’s daily COVID-19 case tally breached the 4,000-mark yet again on Sunday.
As many as 4,244 fresh cases were recorded in the State, taking the total number of persons who have tested positive to 1,38,470*. At the same time, 3,617 persons were discharged from various facilities after treatment, bringing their overall tally to 89,532.
According to the daily health bulletin of the Directorate of Public Health, the number of active cases in Tamil Nadu stood at 46,969.
The State also recorded 68 deaths on Sunday, including 25 at private hospitals and 43 at government facilities. The overall death toll stands at 1,966.
Among the deaths recorded in Sunday’s bulletin, eight persons had no co-morbid conditions. Five of them had died at government hospitals and three at private hospitals.
In Chennai, 1,168 patients tested positive for the infection, while 1,668 persons were discharged. A total of 17,469 persons were undergoing treatment, including those at home, health officials said.
The city has recorded a total of 77,338 cases, and 58,615 persons have been discharged.
On Sunday, Chennai recorded 32 deaths, taking the total number of people who have died in the State capital to 1,253.
Spike in districts
Thirteen districts in the State recorded cases in triple digits.
Kancheepuram led the pack with 385 cases, followed by Madurai with 319. Virudhunagar posted 246 cases, Chengalpattu 245, and Tiruvallur 232.
Tiruvallur and Madurai accounted for five deaths each, while Chengalpattu and Virudhunagar recorded four deaths each.
As many as 16,09,448 samples have been tested, including the 42,531 samples tested on Sunday.
A total of 15,42,234 persons have been tested in the State so far.
The State government has approved three private laboratories in Tiruchi for COVID-19 testing. With this, there are 105 approved laboratories in the State, including 53 in the government sector and 52 in the private sector.
Pulse oximeters
The Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation has procured 43,000 units of pulse oximeter to test the oxygen saturation level in the blood, Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar said in a press release.
Already, 23,000 units of the device had been distributed for use in fever clinics and COVID care centres, and to check patients in home settings.
The remaining units would be distributed in a couple of days, Mr. Vijayabaskar said.
(Two deaths were cross-notified to other States and one patient died after testing negative for the infection).
