QChennai: 527 New COVID-19 Cases in a Day; TASMAC to Open on 7 May
Top stories from Chennai and Tamil Nadu.
1. 527 COVID-19 Cases in TN in a Day: Koyambedu Market Cluster a Major Source
Tamil Nadu reported 527 COVID-19 cases on 4 May a major chunk of these are patients who are either working at Koyambedu wholesale market for perishable goods like vegetables, fruits, grains and flowers in Chennai or their contacts. With this, the state presently has 3,550 COVID-19 cases of which 2,107 are active cases.
Chennai still remains Tamil Nadu’s biggest hotspot and of the new cases reported on Monday, 266 are from the district. The second-highest number of cases on Monday has been reported from Cuddalore - 122 in all. The district presently has 161 COVID-19 cases and all new cases reported on Monday have been sourced to the Koyambedu market cluster in Chennai. People - especially farmers and vendors from other districts - travel to Koyambedu to sell their produce.
(Source: The News Minute)
2. Migrant Workers Protest in Koyambedu and Other Parts of Chennai
Migrant labourers resorted to minor protests on roads in some parts of city demanding that they be allowed to return to their native states.
In Koyambedu, over 1,000 migrant labourers hailing from Bihar were working as loadmen and were doing other tasks in the wholesale market. As they could not find food or shelter, the agitated workers walked to Koyambedu police station for assistance. Police personnel prevented them from proceeding towards Central Railway Station and held talks with them. The police collected the details from them for arranging their return.
(Source: The Hindu)
3. TASMAC Shops to Open in Tamil Nadu on 7 May
Tamil Nadu’s TASMAC shops will open on 7 May throughout the state, except in containment zones, officials announced on Monday. The Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) shops will function from 10 am to 5 pm, with certain restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the permission to open bars has not been given.
The TASMAC liquor shops were closed as part of the nationwide lockdown announced by the central government on March 24 to curb the spread of the coronavirus. After more than a month, the state government has decided to lift the ban on the sale of the liquor.
(Source: The News Minute)
4. Food Distribution Banned Within 2km Radius of Hotspots
The Chennai Corporation has banned the distribution of food within 2-km radius of containment zones, Corporation hospitals, COVID-19 testing centres, government tertiary care hospitals and designated private hospitals as directed by the Madras High Court.
In an order late on Monday, Corporation Commissioner G Prakash said that NGOs and other organisations would not be permitted to distribute food within 2-km radius of hotspots that include Corporation hospitals, testing centres and designated private hospitals.
(Source: The Hindu)
5. Over 1.26 Lakh People Register on Tamil Nadu Govt Website to Return to State
A day after the website for registration of stranded Tamil Nadu residents was opened, over 1.26 lakh Tamils currently in other states and countries have registered to come back to Tamil Nadu.
According to a report in The Hindu, over 1.18 lakh people who are stranded in Tamil Nadu have also registered on the portal as on Sunday morning, requesting the state government to take steps to help them get back to their home states.
Of the 1.26 lakh people, over 52,000 are Tamils living abroad. However, officials stated that the number of people wanting to return to their native states from Tamil Nadu is bound to reduce as industries resume operations.
(Source: The News Minute)
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