KG,primary schools closed in TN till Mar 31;Theatres,malls too

The Tamil Nadu government on Sunday directed closure of all kindergarten and primary schools till March 31 as it stepped up preventive measures against coronavirus even as two more people with suspected symptoms of the virus were quarantined in Coimbatore.

Chief Minister K Palaniswami also issued orders for closure of cinema halls and malls where people gather in large numbers till the month end in taluks in 16 districts bordering neighbouring Kerala and Karnataka, where the number of COVID- 19 cases is on the rise, an official release said.

A Coimbatore report said two people, including a woman have been admitted to the Government Hospitals here with the suspected symptoms of Coronavirus.

The 26-year old woman had arrived here from Qatar late on Saturday night from Qatar.

As she was suffering from fever and cold, she came to the Government Medical College and ESI hospital for diagnosis and treatment on Sunday morning, hospital sources said.

After her blood samples and sputum were collected, she was quarantined in the hospital, they said.

The second was a man who returned from Thailand some days back, travelled to many places with his friends and finally came to Erode.

As he was suffering from fever and cough, they brought him to the Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital, where he has been quarantined, hospital sources said.

His blood sample and swab were taken and sent for tests to Chennai, they said.

Among the series of measures ordered by the Chief Minister were release of Rs 60 crore from the State Disaster Relief Fund to spruce up the preventive mechanism to contain the spread of the virus, which, however, has infected only one person in the state so far.

The 45-year-old engineer from neighbouring Kancheepuram district is set to be discharged from hospital in the coming days as he has recovered and tested negative for COVID-19.

In a detailed statement, Palaniswami said passengers arriving at Chennai, Madurai, Coimbatore and Tiruchirappalli airports should be isolated if they showed symptoms of the virus.

"If necessary, passengers should be isolated for 14 days at facilities set up near these airports as per World Health Organisation norms", he said.

The Chief Minister advised the revenue, police and transport departments to jointly take up preventive measures on a war-footing at check posts in districts bordering neighbouring states.

He directed the Commissioner of Revenue Administration to coordinate with the departments and asked District Collectors to send reports to the Chief Minister and Health Minister on a daily basis.

Palaniswami also ordered officials to enhance sanitising mechanisms in places like temples, mosques and churches and local administrations to appoint a person to monitor these initiatives.

Among the suggestions he gave to the public were to avoid journeys to other states and also not to congregate en masse in the next 15 days, practice personal hygiene and wash their hands regularly while entering their houses.

Elderly people and those suffering from diseases and children should avoid visits to places frequented by lots of people, he said