Chennai: The S Krishnan Committee, constituted to frame guidelines for opening of select industries after 20 April and for the way forward after the lockdown ends on 3 May, will submit its report to the Tamilnadu government on Monday, based on which some important decisions are to be taken immediately, highly placed sources said.
However, industries falling within containment zones will not be allowed to function, it is learnt and this creates a doubt over functioning of companies including IT firms in and around Chennai.
According to Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, “The Union government has offered relaxations for operating certain industries. A committee headed by Finance Secretary S Krishnan has been formed to study directions of the Centre, and it will review the industries that can be permitted to operate. It will be announced on Monday.”
He added: “Sago unit operators have petitioned, requesting to allow them to operate units. Farmers’ associations have also petitioned to allow them to harvest the crops, so that they do not suffer loss. These requests are under the government’s consideration. These will be reviewed on 20 April.”
After a significant reduction in the last three days, the number of people testing positive rose to 56 on Friday, taking Tamilnadu’s Covid-19 tally to 1,323 in 34 districts of the State.
An official release here said of the 56 cases, a maximum of 17 was reported from Thanjavur, Chennai (11-one Primary and ten contacts), Kanniyakumari and Tiruvallur and Tenkasi (5 each), Tiruvarur (4), Vellore and Trichy (3 each), Nagapattinam, Theni and Villuppuram (2 each), Karur and Dindugul (one each).
No fresh deaths were reported today as the toll remained at 15 which is a mere 1.1 per cent. But the most encouraging factor is that the number of discharged patients saw a quantum jump, with 103 people returning home after treatment, including 30 from the Omandurar Multi Super Speciality hospital here and 12 in Coimbatore, taking the numbers from 180 to 283–a recovery rate of phenomenal 21.4 per cent. Discharges continued today too, including 10 persons who were sent home from Government Kilpauk Hospital alone.