Two districts — Ramanathapuram and Perambalur — recorded no new case of COVID-19, while 19 districts reported less than 10 cases each, as 761 persons tested positive for the infection in the State on Saturday.
Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Kallakurichi, Karur, Krishnagiri, the Nilgiris, Pudukottai, Ranipet, Sivaganga, Tenkasi, Theni, Tirupathur, Tiruvannamalai, Tiruvarur, Thoothukudi, Villupuram and Virudhunagar recorded less than 10 fresh cases each.
Chennai's daily count remained in the 200-plus range. As many as 218 persons tested positive for the infection, taking the city’s tally to 2,27,575.
Coimbatore reported 69 cases and Salem 52. There were 46 cases in Chengalpattu, 39 in Tiruvallur and 27 each in Tiruppur and Tiruchi. The fresh cases included four returnees from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand and West Bengal.
The State’s overall tally stood at 8,25,537. As of date, 7,304 persons are undergoing treatment for the infection. A total of 882 persons, including 253 in Chennai, were discharged after treatment on Saturday, while seven persons (five in private hospitals and two in government hospitals) died. A total of 8,06,018 persons have been discharged till date, while the toll stands at 12,215.
Chennai and Vellore recorded two fatalities each, while Kancheepuram, Ranipet and Thanjavur reported one death each.
All seven persons who died had co-morbidities. One of them, a 30-year-old man from Vellore, who had diabetes, had been admitted to a private medical college hospital on January 5 with complaints of fever and vomiting for six days, breathing difficulty for a day and chest pain and loose stools for two days. He died on January 8 due to acute respiratory distress syndrome and COVID-19 pneumonia.
A total of 65,513 samples were tested in 24 hours. As many as 1,47,60,619 samples have been tested till date.
Two private laboratories have been approved for COVID-19 testing — ABS Hospital, Karur, and Neuberg Ehrlich Lab, Salem.
With this, there are 179 private testing facilities and 68 government laboratories in the State.
