More Than Half Of The COVID-19 Deaths So Far Are From Two States - Maharashtra & Gujarat

The COVID-19 situation continues to remain grim in India and despite the lockdown which came into effect on March 25, the number of cases continues to climb every passing day. On Wednesday, the total number of COVID-19 cases in the country crossed the 30,000 mark and is currently at 31,587.

AP

The death toll from the viral infection has also seen a subsequent rise. On Wednesday, the death toll from COVID-19 in India stood at 1007.

But there is more to it. More than half of the deaths have been reported form just two states. At 400, Maharashtra has the most number of COVID-19 deaths in India followed by Gujarat at 141.

AFP

It should not come as a total surprise as Maharashtra and Gujarat also have the highest number of COVID-19 positive cases in India. As of Wednesday, Maharashtra has recorded 9,318 COVID-19 cases out of which 7,530 are active.

At least 728 people were confirmed with positive with coronavirus infection on Tuesday. The total number of COVID-19 cases have climbed to 9,318. Over 30 people died due to COVID-19 infection in the state in the last 24 hours.

AFP

Gujarat has the second highest number of cases at 3,774 out of which 3,159 are still under treatment. Gujarat on Tuesday reported 226 new coronavirus positive cases, with Ahmedabad alone accounting for 164.

While the two states have the highest number of cases and deaths the manner in which it escalated is totally different. Since March, Maharashtra was among the state that had the highest number of COVID-19 cases in India while in the neighboring state it was just a few cases. The number of COVID-19 cases began spiking in Gujarat in mid-April and it has since on the same trajectory.

Recently there were some claims that the l-strand of the COVID-19 virus is behind the high mortality rate in Gujarat. This, however, has not been scientifically established yet.

AFP

Other states with the high number of COVID-19 deaths are Madhya Pradesh which has seen 120 deaths so far, followed by Delhi at 54 and Rajasthan at 52. The number of COVID-19 hotspot districts in India as on Wednesday morning has come down to 129 from 170 a fortnight ago, but in the same period the number of infection-free districts or green zones too decreased from 325 to 307.

The government has identified 15 districts in nine states, including Delhi, Maharashtra and Gujarat, as having "high case load". Of these, seven Hyderabad (Telangana), Pune (Maharashtra), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Mumbai (Maharashtra) and Delhi show particularly high case volumes.