The annual exhibition in connection with Thrissur Pooram was temporarily closed after 18 people at the venue tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday.
Those who tested positive, including traders and their helpers, were kept in quarantine and the Health Department was preparing their contact list. With this development, the district administration decided to close the exhibition till the end of Pooram.
According to unofficial reports, 52 police trainees at the Integrated Police Recruitment Training Centre of the Kerala Police Academy tested positive for COVID-19. Training was temporarily suspended at the centre.
In the wake of the spurt in COVID-19 cases, all driving tests under RTO and sub-RTOs in the district had been suspended till May 4. Those who have booked slots in this period would be given an opportunity at a later date.
The Vazhachal, Athirappilly and Malakkappara tourist centres will remain closed for two weeks as the COVID scenario had turned critical in the tribal hamlets. On Tuesday, 20 positive cases were reported from Vazhachal. Tourists would be stopped at the check post at Vettilappara.
Surges in cases
On Tuesday, a total of 1,868 COVID-19 cases were reported in the district, while 521 people recovered from the disease. The test positivity rate in the district stood at 19.36% on the day.
The district presently has 9,089 active cases, and 97 people from here are undergoing treatment in hospitals in other districts. So far, 1,16,657 COVID-19 cases have been reported from the district and 1,06,918 people have made recoveries.
According to official statistics, 1,833 people, including 14 health workers, contracted the disease through local contact on Tuesday. Of them, 222 people are above the age of 60 and 87 children are below the age of 10. In all, 5,706 people are under home care.
So far, 5,11,319 people have taken the first dose of the vaccine in the district, while 64,319 people have taken the second dose.
