CHENNAI: Over 84 per cent people in Chennai who contracted COVID have been discharged from the hospital, shows data, even as active cases have hit a new low of a mere 13.6 per cent.
Between July 18 and 27, 13,683 people have been discharged, which is higher than the 12,329 new positive cases recorded in the same period.
Erstwhile hotspots like Tondiarpet now have a mere 6 per cent active cases. Royapuram has 8 per cent. Now, it’s areas like Ambattur, Kodambakkam, Valasarawakkam, Alandur, and Adyar that are witnessing a spike.
The average of active cases here is close to 20 percent. While the case growth rate in the city is now 0.5 per cent in the negative, Ambattur, Adyar, Valsaravakkam, Sholinganallur are reporting growth rates over 3 per cent.
In the past few days, Ambattur and Adyar have been reporting over 100 cases daily. “It is hard to identify the source anymore. If a person is positive, we barricade their houses and ask primary contacts to be in isolation,’’ an official with Ambattur zone said. Civic body’s Public Health officials said they have ramped up testing in south Chennai.
“We can’t really say why there’s a rise. People travel between zones for work. Contact tracing is still rigorous so the spike will come down soon,’’ the official said.
Currently, six Corporation zones have active cases of more than 1,000 and in that, Kodambakkam has 1,970, the highest. Out of the 15 zones, eight corporation zones show a recovery of 80 per cent and more while more than 90 per cent people have recovered at Tondiarpet and Royapuram.
City hospitals get a breather
The drop in cases has reduced the burden on city hospitals. In a recent press meet, Health Minister C Vijayabaskar said only 50-60 per cent of beds are occupied in the government hospitals now.
Express also confirmed with officials at Stanley, Omandurar and KMC, who said that there has been a slight decline in admissions.
However, occupancy is still high at the city’s main hospital, RGGGH. Private hospitals too have most beds vacant. A look at the Government’s www.stopcorona.tn website shows that almost 80 hospitals, out of the 86 hospitals listed for treating Covid-19, have vacant beds.
| Chennai till date Total cases - 95,857 Discharges - 80,761 Active cases - 13,064 |