Amid TN plan to hike docs’ pay, tally zooms past 23,000; toll 184

Amid TN plan to hike docs’ pay, tally zooms past 23,000; toll 184

Under Revised Pay Structure, Docs To Get ₹60k

Pushpa.Narayan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:02.06.2020

Tamil Nadu moved to raise the pay of its doctors as Covid-19 numbers surged past 1,000 for the second day, touching 1,162 cases on Monday with 967 in Chennai alone. Eleven people were reported dead, pushing the toll to 184.

Amid reports that states such as Maharashtra are attempting to lure away doctors, Tamil Nadu is hurriedly revising its pay structure for doctors. Doctors, who were promised up to ₹40,000 salaries are likely to get ₹60,000. “Doctors are working very hard. Many of them who were infected have not just donated blood plasma for clinical trial but have also reported back to duty,” said health secretary Beela Rajesh.

On Monday, the state tally touched 23,495, and Chennai’s 15,770. Chennai’s neighbours Chengalpet, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur together recorded 90 cases. Fifty of the new cases were returnees from other states, including 32 from Maharashtra and 10 from Delhi.

Coimbatore, which had not recorded a case since May 2, reported three cases, all migrants, on Monday. Its neighbour Nilgiris, which had no cases since May 9, reported one from within. Tiruvannamalai and Salem reported 10 cases.

CURED CASES CROSS 10K MARK

‘Severe cases will be reserved for medical colleges’

On Monday, Stanley Medical College professor of general medicine Dr Ravi was back on duty. “I was wearing PPE and I was careful. Once day I developed fever. The next day, I was coughing. I also had fatigue. Test turned positive. I took treatment as per government protocol. I even had kabasura kudineer,” he told reporters. “My results were negative after 12 days. I am back to work now,” he said.

Meanwhile, all peripheral hospitals will treat mild and moderate cases while severe cases will be reserved for medical colleges, health minister C Vijayabaskar said. Those who had no symptoms or had very mild symptoms will be taken to Covid-19 care centres, he said after reviewing the new Covid ward at Stanley. “The state would add at least 400 more beds in Stanley Medical College Hospital,” he said.

Greater Chennai Corporation nodal officer Dr J Radhakrishnan said the city will track, test, isolate or quarantine as many cases as possible in the coming days. “In the absence of vaccines that will be our only tool to battle the disease in a crowded city like Chennai,” he said.

At the end of the day, 413 people were discharged, and the number of people cured so far is13,170. There are10,138 active cases.

Of the 11 people who succumbed to the illness, three people died within 24 hours. The youngest patient was a 31-year-old woman with chronic kidney disease and hypertension, who died at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital on Sunday, two days after admission. A 45-year-old man died of respiratory failure on Saturday, eight days after admission at a private hospital. The oldest was an 80-year-old man with hypertension and renal failure who died on Monday at the RGGH.

“We are going through one of the worst pandemics. It is important for us to keep everyone calm and safe,” said the health minister.