Still touch and go: 12% of cases in Kerala through contact

Thiruvananthapuram: The state reported its highest single-day count of 86 Covid-19 cases on Tuesday while one more person — a 77-year-old vicar in Thiruvananthapuram — succumbed to the infection. The number of Covid deaths in the state rose to 12 as 774 of the total 1,412 cases reported in the state are under treatment.

Among the new cases, 12 persons — including a health worker in Palakkad — were infected by contact. Currently, 12 % of those tested Covid positive in the state are contacts. Of 913 persons tested positive since May 4, when Phase III of the infection started in Kerala with the arrival of Malayalis from other states, 112 are contacts. In the last 10 days from May 24, though the number of cases were consistently rising, the number of contacts infected was lower — on most days less than 5 contacts were infected, except on May 26 when it was 7 and on Tuesday when its rose to 12.

The other cases who tested positive on Tuesday include 46 who came from abroad and 26 from other states. While those with travel history was 334 among 499 cases reported in the state till May 3, it is 813 among 913 cases reported after that.

The vicar, K G Varghese of Nalanchira, was admitted to Thiruvananthapuram medical college hospital after he met with a road accident. His swab was taken on Monday and he was tested positive for the virus on Tuesday. He died on Tuesday morning while his source of infection has not been traced yet.

Among the new cases, 12 persons – including a health worker in Palakkad -- were infected by contact. The other cases include 46 people who came from abroad and 26 from other states. While those with travel history was 334 among 499 cases reported in the state till May 3, it is 813 among 913 cases reported after that.

Malappuram (15) had the maximum cases reported on Tuesday, followed by Alappuzha (10), Kasaragod (9), Kollam (8), Thiruvananthapuram (7), Kottayam, Thrissur and Wayanad (6 each), Palakkad, Kozhikode and Kannur (5 each), Ernakulam (3) and Pathanamthitta (1). As many as 1,47,010 people are under surveillance in the state, of whom 1,45,670 are under home/institutional quarantine and 1,340 admitted to designated isolation facilities.