With 25 more people testing positive for the coronavirus, the total number of persons infected in the Indian Institute of Technology - Madras (IIT-M) has gone up to 55, said Tamil Nadu Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan. According to him, tests are being conducted in 19 hostels in the IIT-M complex. The infection rate is higher in a hostel that has students from other states. Out of 1,420 persons, 55 have tested positive. The premium institute was declared a COVID-19 zone on Thursday, April 21.

Radhakrishnan also said that the government will be increasing the number of COVID-19 tests from the current 18,000 to 25,000 per day. According to the state government, on Friday, April 23, 57 persons tested positive for the coronavirus in Tamil Nadu and the total number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 286.

Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu government has mandated wearing of masks, and added that violations of the mask rule will attract a Rs 500 fine. In an order issued on Friday, the Tamil Nadu Health Department has said that the decision was taken considering the rising COVID-19 cases in the country, especially in Delhi.

Further, as on Friday, recoveries in the state were comparatively lower to new cases with 27 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours, aggregating to 34,15,136 leaving 286 active cases.

Majority of the cases were reported from Chennai with 37, followed by Chengalpet with five, Kancheepuram with three, and Madurai and Tirunelveli recorded two each, respectively. Coimbatore, Erode, Sivagangai, Tenkasi, Tiruvallur, Tiruvarur, Tuticorin and Tiruppur recorded one case each. The state capital leads in overall cases among districts with 7,51,394 infections.

A total of 18,006 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 6,60,18,119, the bulletin said and added that the death toll remained unchanged at 38,025 with zero fatalities in the last 24 hours.

(With IANS inputs)