CHENNAI: On a day when the State Covid tally climbed down from the 6,000-mark after a week’s gap, the government announced the extension of lockdown till August 31 with a few more relaxations. The decision was taken following a meeting of health experts chaired by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami at the Secretariat on Thursday.
“Though the pace of infection has come down owing to the lockdown and intense testing, the government has decided to extend the lockdown to contain the virus further,” Palaniswami said. The State on Thursday reported 5,864 cases, a substantial decline from the 6,426 reported on Wednesday. However, the toll touched an all-time high of 97.
In a big relief to the city folk, the government has permitted e-commerce firms to resume operations. However, public transport will not become operational anytime soon. A complete lockdown will continue on all Sundays across the State, and large social, political and religious gatherings will continued to be banned, said the Chief Minister.
Small places of worship, except those located in municipal corporations, can now be opened up for public. All educational institutions, training centres, research centres, malls, film theatres, gyms, swimming pools, beaches, tourist spots, zoos and museums will remain shut till August 31.
“The government will continue to monitor the infection rate and more relaxations will be announced in due course, depending on the situation and people’s cooperation,” the Chief Minister said. Chennai reported 1,175 fresh cases, while its neighbouring districts witnessed a dip in numbers — Chengalpattu (354), Kancheepuram (175), and Tiruvallur (325).
The Chief Minister also said that e-pass will be necessary, as before, for inter-district and inter-State movement. Independence Day will be celebrated as per the guidelines issued by the Centre, following all safety protocols. The reduction in Statewide tally is seen as a positive sign as the number had been hovering over 6,000 since July 23. Among other districts, Coimbatore reported 303 cases, Tirunelveli 277, Kanniyakumari 248, Ranipet 272, Theni 261, Virudhunagar 244, Madurai and Thoothukudi 220 each. Seven other districts also reported over 100 cases.
Over 5K cured, nearly 60K tested on Thursday
Recovery rate across Tamil Nadu continued to remain impressive with 5,295 patients being discharged on the day, taking the number of cured people to 1,78,178. With the State continuing to test over 50,000 people on a daily basis, the total number of people tested crossed the 25-lakh mark. On Thursday, a total of 59,437 people were tested, taking the total to 25,01,919. Among the deceased, eight persons did not have co-morbidities. Two of the deceased were girls, aged three and five.
The five-year-old girl from Ariyalur died on July 27 at 3.30 pm, when she was brought to Thanjavur Medical College Hospital, the bulletin said. She died due to respiratory failure, acute encephalitis syndrome, aspiration pneumonia and viral pneumonia.
The three-year-old from Nagapattinam was brought to Government Tirvarur Medical College and Hospital. She was suffering from seizure and cerebral palsy. She tested positive on July 9 and died on July 13 due to status epilepticus, aspiration pneumonia, failure to thrive, cerebral palsy and seizure.
25,01,919 Total number of people tested in Tamil Nadu
More relaxations based on situation
The government will continue to monitor the infection rate and more relaxations will be announced, depending on the situation and people’s cooperation, the CM said