With 15,108 fresh infections, the number of COVID-19 cases reported daily in Tamil Nadu continued to fall for the twenty-second consecutive day on Saturday.
Fresh cases reported by Chennai went below the 1,000-mark for the first time after 72 days. The last time it reported less than 1,000 cases was on March 31. The fresh infections reported by Coimbatore went below the 2,000-mark.
The State reported 374 deaths and 27,463 recoveries. The total number of deaths stood at 29,280. Tamil Nadu had 1,62,073 active cases.
Coimbatore reported 1,982 cases, the highest in the State, followed by Erode (1,353), Chennai (989), Salem (894), and Tiruppur (844). Thanjavur (645) and Chengalpattu (586) were the other two districts that reported more than 500 cases.
Another 28 districts reported more than 100 cases, while only Ariyalur and Perambalur reported less than 100 cases. Compared with Friday, the districts of Tiruvannamalai, Sivaganga, Theni, and Tirupattur reported a marginal increase in cases, while all other districts registered a decline.
Of the 374 deaths, 145 were women and 229 were men. A total of 195 were aged above 60. The oldest was a 97-year-old woman from Chennai, while the youngest was a 17-year-old girl from Tiruvallur district. Chennai reported the highest of 73 deaths, followed by Salem (30), Tiruvallur (29), Coimbatore (27) and Dindigul (21).
Highest tests
Even as the cases continued to fall, the number of persons tested continued to increase. According to the official bulletin, 1,73,724 persons were tested, the highest ever in the State. Consequently, the daily test positivity rate dropped further to 8.7%.
Following a week of decline due to the lack of supplies, vaccination picked up again with the arrival of fresh doses. A total of 3,26,573 doses were administered as against 38,737 doses the day before. This was the highest number of doses administered in a day so far. On May 27, the State administered 3,23,915 doses, the second highest.
