CHENNAI: With an active caseload of 1.03 percent and a positivity rate of 1.3 percent, Tamil Nadu has begun the new year on a positive note.
Chennai, on the eve of December 31, did a whopping 11,540 Covid tests. The city’s positivity rate is at 2.4 percent while the active cases are just slightly above one percent.
With a sizable population being already infected in Tamil Nadu, experts suggest a clinical approach to testing for Covid, as well as a focus on travelers from airport and railway stations.
“Random tests across the city could be reduced and doctors must be advised to report symptoms of Covid to civic authorities without fail, so their contacts could be traced down,” said virologist Dr Jacob John.
He said that testing in airports must continue.
“We still have the infection everywhere in small numbers and the new UK variant spreads faster, however, it is not much different from the previous variants,” he added. Thus, it still puts people who are not infected in a vulnerable position, added John.
Presently, Tamil Nadu has tested 1,38,88,135 people which is about 17 percent of its population. Among them, 8,18,014 have tested positive.
In Chennai, about 30 lakh people are tested so far, which is slightly below 40 percent of the city’s population. Among them, 2.25 lakh people have tested positive.
Public health officials said that there won't be any change in the testing and containment measures in the coming months.
“Same numbers of people would be tested in the coming months as surveillance has to continue. So far, 1936 passengers to UK travel history have been tested. We would strongly continue to monitor the travelers from railway stations and buses as well,” said a health department official.
With 88,830 fever camps held so far, The Chennai Corporation too is expected to extend the camps for the upcoming months. Officials said the fever camps will continue as long as surveillance is required.