Nine-month Old Child Succumbs to COVID-19 in Pondy; Single Day

PUDUCHERRY:
A nine-month old boy died of COVID-19 in Puducherry on Thursday, taking the toll to 22, while a single day high of 147 fresh cases pushed the overall tally to 1,743.

Director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar told reporters through video mode that the child was admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Government Women and Child hospital here with complaints of diarrhea yesterday and tested positive for the virus and died. The Health department has stepped up efforts to trace the source of infection for the baby.

The union territory recorded a single day high of 147 cases during the last 24 hours, of which 128 were in Puducherry, 12 in Karaikal and seven in Yanam region. The total number of coronavirus cases in Puducherry so far is 1,743 of whom 774 are active cases.

Total patients recovered and discharged so far were 947 and fatalities were 22. The 147 new cases were identified at the end of testing of 1,079 samples during the last 24 hours, Mohan Kumar said.

As many as 58 patients were discharged after recovery, he added. The death of the child indicated that age is not a factor to reckon with for the patients falling victims to the dreaded infection, he said.

The Health department Director appealed to people to adhere to safety norms so that the spread of the infection could be controlled.