Delhi's COVID-19 Data Shows 984 Deaths, But MCD Records Show 2098 COVID Funerals

For a long time now the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi has been accused of covering up the real situation of the COVID-19 pandemic in the national capital.It has been alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal government has been hiding the real death toll due to COVID-19 in Delhi.?

As of Thursday, the official figures put the COVID-19 deaths in Delhi at 984.However, many doctors and hospitals had alleged that the number of registered deaths are much lower than what is happening at hospitals across Delhi.?

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Now the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) said on Thursday that at least 2,098 people died in the national capital due to COVID-19."From March till June 10, including all the three MCDs of Delhi, there have been 2,098 cremations of Covid-19 patients," Jai Prakash, Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), said adding that these are numbers different from the suspected Covid-19 cases.?

"These numbers are different from suspected cases. There are over 200 cases of suspected Covid-19 patients being cremated in Delhi by the three MCDs," he said. When asked about the disparity with the official figures, Jai Prakash said that the Delhi government had issued a notice on May 16 to all the three civic bodies as the data were mismatching.?

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"The MHO of all of the three civic bodies on May 17 collected the data and shared with them, and since then the difference has doubled. I don't know why the Delhi government is not releasing the accurate death figures," he said.?

Last month, amid the allegations of mismatch in the number of deaths, the Delhi Government had decided that tests will not be carried out after the patient's death even if the person is suspected to have died of coronavirus. However, this was overruled by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which said that all suspected Covid19 cases should be tested for infection even after the death of the patients.?

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ICMR had said that if COVID-19 test report is awaited, the body must not be released from a mortuary until the final report is received and after the formalities, it must be handed over to the district administration. It also stated that the body must be cremated in electric crematorium, wherever possible, so that the movement and handling of the body is minimised.

Last month the Delhi Government had also stopped the publishing of hospital-wise death data from the daily health bulletin.