CHENNAI: A 56-year-old staffer in the office of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami died of coronavirus on Tuesday night in Chennai, officials have confirmed.
The deceased staff was working in the cadre as 'senior private secretary' and was hospitalised for over a week now.
He was first admitted to the Government Multi-Super-Speciality Hospital at Omandurar estate and later shifted to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH). From there he was shifted to a private hospital and then again RGGGH, where he breathed last on Tuesday night.
The family is residing in a government employees quarters in Saidapet.
Expressing shock at the death of his colleague, Peter Anthonysami, president, Tamil Nadu Secretariat Association told Express: "To avoid further deaths, the government should close down the Secretariat
till the lockdown period is over since the infection is spreading speedily at the secretariat premises. If not, even among the minimum number of staff, those who are above 55, pregnant women and those who
are suffering from cardiac and other ailments should not be asked to come to the secretariat."
Meanwhile, sources said around 200 employees including many IAS officers and officers at different ranks have contracted this infection at the secretariat and are under treatment.
The TNSA had been demanding for the past 10 days for the reduction of staff strength from 50 to 33 per cent.
From June 19 however, all government offices will function only with 33 percent employees and employees from containment zones need not come to the office.