COVID-19: Tamil Nadu scales 1000-mark, 93,560 people quarantined for 28 days

Meanwhile, in a fresh round of confusion, an Indigo Airlines passenger who died in isolation tested positive for COVID-19 in a private lab, but negative at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.

Published: 13th April 2020 04:40 AM 

Brick kiln wearing a deserted look amidst lockdown at Chikkarayapuram| R Satish Babu

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The total number of COVID-19 positive cases in Tamil Nadu have increased to 1,075. Of them, 11 have died till date including a 45-year-old woman on Saturday. She was undergoing treatment at a government hospital in Chennai. The woman, a contact of one of the Delhi returnees, developed breathing trouble and subsequently succumbed. 

Meanwhile, in a fresh round of confusion, an Indigo Airlines passenger who died in isolation tested positive for COVID-19 in a private lab, but negative at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.

“The patient was tested positive in private lab, but when his sample was tested twice at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, it turned to be negative. But, as a preparatory measure, we have carried out containment activities in his area. Also, we are auditing the death. After that only we could come to any conclusion. So, now officially its not included in the State death figure,” said Director of Public Health K Kolandaswamy. 

Across the State, 93,560 people with a travel history have been quarantined for 28 days.

Till now, a total of 10,655 samples have been taken from passengers. Among them 1,075 samples have tested positive till date, and 8,373 have tested negative. Testing of 1,207 samples are under process and 124 are repeat samples of same persons.

Of the cases reported on Sunday, a whopping 69 were from Western Districts. Tirupur alone had 35 fresh cases, including a one-year-old baby and a government nurse.

In Tiruchy too, a toddler (1.5 years) is in isolation, along with the mother. “The baby is positive but the mother is negative. We have allowed the mother to stay with the child,” said sources, adding that the mother would also be given hydroxychloroquine, the drug used in fighting the viral outbreak, as she is in contact with the baby. The child’s father is already undergoing treatment.

Four Indonesian couples arrested in Chengalpattu

Four couples from Indonesia were arrested on Saturday by Chengalpattu district police for indulging in religious activities while they are in India on tourist visas. These couples had attended the Tablighi Jamaat’s conference in Delhi early March and had subsequently reached Maduranthakam in Chengalpattu district on March 21 by train.Police said the eight people were preaching small gatherings despite the lockdown. On April 5, the police booked them and their samples were taken for the COVID 19 test. Recently, the results returned negative. All of them were arrested Saturday. The main charges against them are violation of the norms of tourist visa and indulging in religious activities, violation of the quarantine, and malignant activities to spread the infection. 

Identity of doctor with COVID-19 revealed

The Nagapattinam district administration on Sunday revealed the identity of a doctor who tested positive for coronavirus with an appeal to the public to identify those who had contacts with him in the last three weeks. Dr C Kumarappan (73), a retired government physician cum private medical practitioner was tested positive.

District Collector Praveen P Nair said, “We are compelled to disclose the details of Dr C Kumarappan to trace and treat all those who had contacts with him. We request the people who had met him, got treated by him, had a medical consultation from him in the past three weeks to come forward and contact us so that we can help in treating them.”

(With inputs from Coimbatore, Tirupur, Namakkal, Salem, and Erode)