While the never-wished surge in COVID-19 cases in Chennai has kept the city as an active hotspot, it has now triggered a strong question among the residents on whether the hospitals in the city have a dearth of the treating facilities and beds to treat COVID-19 patients as the city has been adding at least a thousand cases to its tally for the past few days.

Amid the developments, veteran Tamil actor Varadharajan has released a video in social media in which he expressed his anxiety over what he has experienced in the hospitals while accompanying his family friend for COVID-19 treatment. In the video, he said his friend had developed difficulty in breathing on Monday following which he was rushed to the hospital.

The actor states that, however, there is no availability of beds in all the hospitals they approached. By claiming that they approached major private and government hospitals in the city, the actor says the hospitals told him not to bring the patient as they can't give treatments. He added that he has reached out to the chairmen of the hospitals and secretary-level officers of the government, but nobody couldn't help them. 

By highlighting that the hospitals have no beds, the actor appealed to the public not to have the excessive belief that COVID-19 won't affect them and asked people to hop out for essential services and to wear masks. He requested not to come outdoors as it would affect the family members. 

Moments after he released his video, it was circulated across social media and drawn huge attention on the availability of beds and treating the vulnerable people in the hospitals in Chennai. However, the government's notion was contrary to what the actor had claimed and it has brought a strong word from the government. 

While addressing the reporters in Chennai following the actor's video, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Vijayabaskar has denied what the actor has said on the availability of beds. The Health Minister asserted that the city has enough beds to treat COVID-19 patients. According to the minister, the government hospitals in the city have the availability of 5000 beds currently.

By citing that Actor Varadharajan has given falsified information that is against the government, Vijayabaskar said that the action would be taken against the actor under the grounds of the Epidemic Diseases Act. The Minister said that the government would initiate action against those who spread rumors. 

The Minister stated that the hospitals in the city have adequate facilities to treat the patients and added that the health department has decided to integrate 70 private hospitals in the city to install more beds for COVID-19 patients.