COVID-19 cases surge to 3,550 in TN; Record single-day tally of 527

(Eds: Adds details) Chennai, May 4 () In the biggest single-day surge inthe state so far, Tamil Nadu on Monday reported 527 newCOVID-19 cases, a large number of them linked to Koyambedumarket here, taking the tally to 3,550 while the toll rose to31 with the death of one person, the government said. The new cases included 19 new-born and children below theage of ten, a health department bulletin said. Thirty people were discharged from various hospitals, asthe aggregate of those recovered and sent home rose to 1,409,but the state's recovery rate which was hovering over ahealthy 50 plus per cent till recently took a hit in view ofthe steady spike in the cases in the past few days. In fact, the state added a whopping 1,086 cases in thelast six days. Amid the continued surge in COVID-19 cases, Chief MinisterK Palaniswami called on Governor Banwarilal Purohit andbriefed him over the ongoing measures to tackle the spread ofthe contagion and related aspects. The Governor discussed the COVID-19 control measures takenby the state government and prevailing current situation withthe chief minister, a Raj Bhavan release said. "A 65-year old man with co-morbidities admitted to theStanley Medical College Hospital here died due to COVID-19infection today," the bulletin said. In continuing trend of heavy numbers in the past few daysamid stepped up testing, the state reported 527 new cases. "A large number of today's cases are linked to theKoyambedu market," it said. There was no respite for Chennai as the metropolisreported 266 infections, taking the total number of COVID-19cases in the state capital to 1,724 while Cuddalore districtaccounted for the next highest new cases on Monday with 122. The Koyambedu wholesale vegetable market here, the state'slargest, has emerged as a hotspot for the virus in recent daysas several traders and loadmen tested positive, promptingauthorities to scaledown operations there. A senior police official from the city was among theconfirmed cases on Monday, making him the first IPS officer inthe state to contract the infection. He had made a few visits to the Koyambedu market to reviewthe containment measures implemented there, police sourcessaid. Authorities in Cuddalore, over 200 km from here, told that 100 plus samples -taken from those associated with theKoyambedu market - tested positive in their district. Of the total 161 positive cases as on date, at least 124were linked to the market hotspot, they added. As of Sunday, Cuddalore had only 39 positive cases. As on date, Tamil Nadu has 2,107 active caes and on Mondayalone 12,863 samples were tested, taking the total to1,62,970. Krishnagiri district remained the only bright spot in thestate, retaining its green zone tag with another day of nilcases. As a result of continuous capacity addition, the state has50 labs, including 14 in private sector. Meanwhile, expressing solidarity with frontline warriorsof COVID-19, the Defence public relations office here tweetedsaying two C-130 J Hercules aircraft traversing across thenation flew over Kanyakumari in southern most tip in a gestureof solidarity. In another tweet, it said Combat Vehicles Research andDevelopment Establishment, a DRDO lab at Avadi here, "deliversthe special software 'Kavasam' (armour) to the Corporation ofAvadi for COVID-19 tracking and resource allocation." The android based mobile application is for the teamleaders and facilitiates among other aspects assigning healthworkers tasks like house surveillance and data collection. "A resourceful database for the corporation is createdwith geocoding of streets and number of houses in eachstreet," a CVRDE release said. Also, another app has been developed for geofencing ofthe home or quarantined person and it provides notification toauthorities if the positive person moves 100 meters away fromhis or her location. VGN SA VSVS VS