TN man dies of COVID-19 in Puducherry

The apparently asymptomatic man from Chennai, who visited his in-laws here a couple of days ago died of heart attack and an autopsy disclosed that he was positive for the infection, a spokesperson of the Health Department told PTI.

The body was taken to a crematorium in a special ambulance of the hospital and buried as per protocol. Workers wearing full protective dresses handled the mortal remains, he said.

Meanwhile, a video clip which purportedly showed the body being flung from the stretcher to the burial pit surfaced in the social media. The death would be cross notified to Tamil Nadu since the man hailed from Chennai and it would not reflect in territorial official data on virus cases and fatalities.

A release from the Department of Health and Family Welfare Services said five patients taking treatment in the territorial government run Indira Gandhi Medical college hospital in neighbouring Kadirkamam were discharged. Consequently, the hospital now has 30 patients.

The three new patients one of them a doctor reported were admitted to the Centrally administered JIPMER hospital taking the total active cases in JIPMER to 28. Two patients belonging to Puducherry have been taking treatment in hospitals in Chennai and in Salem in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and in all there are now 60 active cases relating to the Union Territory, the release said.

It also said 7,793 samples tested negative out of 7,963 examined on Saturday. The results of other samples were awaited.