COVID-19 | Deaths hit new high in Puducherry with 26 deaths in single day

The Union Territory saw 1,633 new cases with 1,260 in Puducherry, 197 in Karaikal, 147 in Yanam and 29 in Mahe.

Puducherry recorded its highest single-day tally of COVID-19 deaths on Sunday with 26 fatalities, even as the Union Territory saw 1,633 new cases.

Puducherry reported 22 deaths, Karaikal two and Yanam and Mahe one each. The patients, including 13 women, were in the 41-84 age range. Twelve of them had no comorbidities.

The region-wise cumulative toll is 790 in Puducherry, 99 in Karaikal, 60 in Yanam and 16 in Mahe. The new cases, which were confirmed from 9,022 tests, included 1,260 in Puducherry, 197 in Karaikal, 147 in Yanam and 29 in Mahe. The test positivity rate was 18%, the case fatality rate 1.35% and the recovery rate 79.08%.

With 1,158 patients recovering, the active cases stood at 14,034 in the Union Territory. Of them, 2,090 were in hospitals and 11,944 in home isolation. The bed occupancy position in Puducherry is 495 in Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), 334 in Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute (IGMCRI) and 795 in COVID-19 Care Centres.

The virus has spread in urban as well as rural areas in the city. The COVID-19 tracker data indicate that the hotspots across the city, with 50 or more active cases, are Reddiarpalayam, Mettupalayam, Villianur, Kosapalayam, Lawspet, Murungapakkam, Muthialpet, Bahour, Thirubhuvanai, Gorimedu, UFWC headquarters and Mudaliarpet. Places with 21-50 cases include Kalapet, Thavalakuppam, Karikalampakkam and Koodapakkam.

Of an estimated 8.56 lakh tests conducted by the Health Department till date, over 7.73 lakh returned negative. Meanwhile, 130 healthcare workers, 94 frontline personnel and 516 members of the public took their first shots of the COVID-19 vaccine in the last 24 hours. The total number of people vaccinated in the Union Territory is 2,14,794, including 32,965 healthcare workers, 19,458 frontline staff and 1,62,371 members of the public.　

Cuddalore district reported three more COVID-19 deaths and 478 new cases on Sunday, taking the district’s tally to 33,670. Two women, aged 60 and 70, and a 55-year-old man died of the disease, taking the toll to 360.