New Covid cases continue to drop for third consecutive day in Tamil Nadu

Fresh Covid-19 cases in Tamil Nadu continued to drop for the third consecutive day although the state added more than 30,000 new cases for the fourth day in a row. On Tuesday, the 30,055 new cases pushed the number of patients in the active registry to 2.11 lakh. The state reported 48 deaths taking the cumulative toll to 37,312.

Updated On Jan 26, 2022 at 08:05 AM IST

<p>Representative image</p> — Representative image

CHENNAI: Fresh Covid-19 cases in Tamil Nadu continued to drop for the third consecutive day although the state added more than 30,000 new cases for the fourth day in a row. On Tuesday, the 30,055 new cases pushed the number of patients in the active registry to 2.11 lakh. The state reported 48 deaths taking the cumulative toll to 37,312.

The case fatality rate in Tamil Nadu is between 1.2 and 1.3%, but experts say the number of daily deaths is on the rise. The state which was reporting a weekly average of 8 deaths a day on January 5 reported 19 deaths by January 15. On Tuesday, it increased to 39. Fourty five people who died had comorbid conditions.

At least 31 out of the 48 people who died were above the age of 70. Eight others were in their 60s. "In many instances, Covid is an incidental finding. Patients who get admitted with some other complaint test positive for the virus as well," said health minister Ma Subramanian. The state has advised hospitals not to test inpatients getting admitted for other reasons unless they are symptomatic.

Nearly 21 of the 48 deaths were from hotspot Chennai, while its neighbours Chengalpet and Tiruvallur reported four each. Madurai also reported four deaths followed by two each in Coimbatore and Salem. Eleven other districts reported one death each.

Of the 2.11 lakh active cases, 10,088 (5%) were in hospitals. With this nearly 13% of all beds in the state were occupied. While 1133 patients were in the ICU, 4,842 were in oxygen beds. "More than 80% of beds in all categories are vacant. We are at the peak of the infection and there is no shortage of beds, oxygen or drugs," said health secretary J Radhakrishnan.

On Tuesday, five districts reported an increase in cases compared to their tally on Monday. Tirunelveli (662) reported the sharpest increase from 526 cases on Monday. The four other districts that reported an increase were Mayiladuthurai (185), Thiruvannamalai (629), Erode (1,229) and Perambalur (108). Four international passengers - two from Sri Lanka and one each from Norway and the UAE tested positive for the viral infection.