CHENNAI: Operations were suspended at two critical facilities handling the GSLV Mk-3 and Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) projects at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Tuesday after a surge in the coronavirus infections among the employees.
Meanwhile, the Covid kitty of Tamil Nadu continued to swell after 5,834 fresh cases and 118 deaths were reported on the day, driving up the tally to 3,08,649 and the toll to 5,159. While Chennai’s share to the daily caseload came down to 986, its neighbouring districts and other northern districts continued to reel under the surge in infections.
The situation in the undivided Vellore district, which comprises Vellore and the newly formed districts of Ranipet and Tirupathur, remains a cause for concern. As of Tuesday, the tally in the combined district was around 17,000 even as the district administrations scrambled to bring the situation under control.
Among the 118 deaths reported on the day, 11 victims didn’t have any comorbidities. ‘Govt hospitals performing well’ Health Minister C Vijayabaskar, in a press release, said as per the chief minister’s order, government hospitals are also handling non-Covid cases. The minister said that from March to till date, over 27 lakh people were treated as in-patients in government hospitals while many more visited government-run healthcare facilities as outpatients.
During the period, the government hospitals conducted 1,80,571 normal deliveries, 68,479 C-sections and also 1,29,206 deliveries at Comprehensive Emergency Obstetrics and New Born Care centres. When many private hospitals closed down due to the pandemic, government hospitals successfully handled non-Covid cases also, the minister added.