Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala on Wednesday recorded the highest single-day spike with 301 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of infections to 6,195. As many as 107 people recovered from the disease.
With this, the number of patients under treatment rose to 2,605, while 3,559 others recovered from the disease, Kerala Health Minister K K Shailaja said in a statement.
Of the new COVID-19 cases, 90 people contracted the virus through contact. While 99 people came from abroad, 95 came from other states.
This is the first time that the state reported over 300 new cases.
Death toll rises
Meanwhile, in Kasaragod, the test result of a 52-year-old man who was brought dead to the hospital turned positive on Wednesday.
Abdul Rahman, who hailed from Mogral Puthur gram panchayat in Kasaragod district, died on Tuesday morning. Rahman had come from Hubli in Karnataka in a car, along with three others.
The health department has asked nine individuals - his co-passengers in the car, relatives who visited him at the hospital and the medical personnel who treated him - to go into quarantine.
However, the government, in its statement, said Rahman died before reaching hospital and hence his name would not be included in the official list of COVID deaths.
In another incident, Sharafudeen, 67, who had been undergoing treatment for the infection at Kollam Medical College hospital since June 28, died on Wednesday. However, his swab collected on July 6 had tested negative. He was a native of Kayamkulam. His source of infection is yet to be determined. This death also missing in the official record of fatalities.
District-wise break-up of today's positive cases:
Thiruvananthapuram - 64
Malappuram - 46
Thrissur - 25
Palakkad - 25
Kannur - 22
Idukki - 20
Alappuzha - 18
Kottayam - 17
Ernakulam - 16
Kozhikode - 15
wayanad - 14
Kollam - 8
Pathanamthitta - 7
Kasaragod - 4
Today's recoveries:
Kollam - 23
Alappuzha - 16
Ernakulam - 13 (including 1 Kannur native)
Thrissur - 11
Malappuram - 11
Palakkad - 9
Kozhikode - 7 (including 1 Malappuram native)
Kasaragod - 7
Thiruvananthapuram - 6 (including 1 Pathanamthitta native)
Pathanamthitta - 3
Kannur - 1
The split-up of those from other countries: Saudi Arabia - 34, UAE - 24, Kuwait - 19, Qatar - 13, Oman - 6, Bahrain - 2, Kazakhstan - 1.
The split-up of those from other states: Karnataka - 25, Tamil Nadu - 21, West Bengal - 16, Maharashtra - 12, Delhi - 11, Telangana - 3, Gujarat - 3, Chhattisgarh - 2, Assam - 1, Jammu and Kashmir - 1.
Of the 90 contact-based cases, 60 people are from Thiruvananthapuram, while nine are from Ernakulam, seven from Malappuram, five from Kozhikode, three from Alappuzha, two each from Pathanamthitta and Kottayam, one each from Kollam and Idukki district.
Apart from this, nine BSF personnel in Thrissur, one CISF and DSC personnel in Kannur tested positive for the virus. Three ITBP personnel in Alappuzha also found to be infected.
As locally transmitted infections are on the rise in the state, Agriculture Minister V S Sunilkumar on Wednesday said all those who visit government and private hospitals with COVID-19 symptoms will be subjected to antigen test.
The kits for the same are being distributed to the hospitals now, he said.
More restrictions imposed
As majority of the contact-based cases – 60 people – are from Thiruvananthapuram, the government imposed stringent movement restrictions in Poonthura, Manikkavilakam, Beemapally and Puthenpally wards in Thiruvananthapuram corporation.
In view of rising local transmission of the virus, entire Pathanamthitta municipal region has been declared as containment zone. Pathanamthitta and Kumbazha fish markets were also shut down.
The district recorded seven new cases, including two contact-based infections. Of them, one is a member of CPM area committee and another is a trader in Kumbazha fish market. Remaining five cases are imported ones.
In Alappuzha, out of the 18 new cases, three contracted virus through contact. Six officers at the ITBP camp in Nooranad also tested positive on Wednesday. Remaining nine are imported cases.
In Kozhikode, five people in the contact list of a pregnant woman, who tested positive on June 25, infected by the virus. All of them are relatives of the woman. Of the five people, three are native of Meleripadam near Panniyankara and other two are from Kallai. Following this, the health department collected samples of 92 people linked to the five positive cases.
On Wednesday, Malappuram district reported 46 new infections, including 39 imported cases. Seven people contracted the virus through contact.
A police officer who was in charge of Ponnani treasury in Malappuram district tested positive today, prompting the officials to shut down the office.
Thirurangadi municipal office also temporarily closed today as one of its staff tested positive for the virus. According to reports, the sanitation worker, attached to the health department of the municipality, was posted at a quarantine centre in Chemmad.
Following the development, the authorities have asked officials who came in contact with the person to go in quarantine. The office will reopen after disinfection, they said.
14 migrant labourers test positive in Palakkad
Fourteen migrant labourers are among the 25 new cases reported in Palakkad. All of them are men who returned from West Bengal on June 19. The youngest of them is aged 18 and the eldest 39.
They came in a group of 41 people and had been quarantined in a camp in Vandithavalam. Samples of all the inmates were taken on the day of their arrival. Results of 21 samples are yet to come.
All the remaining 11 cases are returnees from abroad (6) and other states (5).
Testing and quarantine
Of the 1,85,546 people under observation for suspected infection, 1,82,409 are home/institutional quarantined and 3,137 hospitalised. As many as 421 people were hospitalised on Wednesday.
Till date 2,15,060 samples (including repeat, augmented and private lab samples) have been sent for testing, out of which results of 4,754 are pending.
Apart from above, 65,101 samples were taken from priority groups like health care workers, persons with high social exposure, workers etc. as part of sentinel surveillance of which 60898 samples tested negative, the minister said in the statement.
