HYDERABAD/ VIJAYAWADA/ CHENNAI/ T’PURAM: Telangana Health Minister Eatala Rajender warned the people of the State to be careful during the Bathukamma celebrations and not repeat the same mistake that Kerala did, as Covid-19 cases witnessed a spike after Onam. He asked the public to ensure that they maintain self-restraint during the celebrations and follow all precautions against the virus.
The Minister was speaking during the launch of the week-long National Deworming Programme in the State on Monday. He also warned of action against private hospitals that do not extend the Arogyasri facility to eligible persons. He said that it had come to his notice that some hospitals were selectively accepting cases depending on the monetary benefits. He also said that quarantine leaves were applicable only for health staff on Covid duty and that the rest of the medical staff in government hospitals must attend to their daily duties.
Daily count declines to 4,256 in AP, toll crosses 6K-mark
After more than two-and-half months, the daily Covid-19 count was less than 5,000 cases in Andhra Pradesh on Monday. The last time the State recorded less than 5,000 cases was on July 21, when 4,944 of the total 37,000 samples tested positive. After that, there had been a steady rise in the daily count of Covid cases.
The toll crossed the 6,000-mark with 38 more fatalities in the State. According to the media bulletin, over 56,145 samples were tested in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Monday - of which 4,256 tested positive for the virus. Kurnool recorded a daily count of less than 100 cases after nearly three months. The district recorded the lowest number of cases in the State at 86.
5,042 fresh cases in Kerala, 4,338 through local contact
Kerala on Monday recorded 5,042 new Covid-19 cases. The comparatively low number of cases was due to the drop in testing of samples. A total of 38,696 samples were tested on the day. Of the 5,042 new patients, 4,338 contracted the infection through local transmission. Of this, the sources of infection of 450 patients still remain unknown. While131 foreign returnees tested positive on the day, over 110 health workers and 13 staff of INHS Sanjivani also contracted the infection. The samples of 4,640 patients came negative on Monday.
62 new deaths take Covid toll to 9,846 in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu recorded 5,395 Covid cases and 62 deaths on Monday, taking the tally to 6,25,391 and toll to 9,846. Chennai alone recorded 1,367 cases. Chennai’s neighbouring districts of Chengalpattu recorded 343 cases, Kancheepuram 155 and Tiruvallur 195 cases. According to the media bulletin issued by the Directorate of Public Health, the State tested 82,725 samples and 80,868 people on the day. Also, 5,572 people were discharged after treatment, taking the total number of people discharged to 5,69,664.