ICMR spokesperson, on Tuesday, said that “ICMR is conducting sero-survey to determine the extent of transmission of virus. About 34,000 individuals are being tested and the results are expected to be out within a week or so.”
COVID-19 | Interactive map of confirmed coronavirus cases in India
“We are far away from “peak”, in comparison to other countries, we are in a much better condition,” said the ICMR spokesperson.
“None of us thinks that there is gross under reporting of deaths in India. We have been good in terms of reduction in mortality, compared to other countries. It is not fair to attribute every death to COVID-19”, said the ICMR spokesperson.
“Causalty analysis is done to determine if any death is due to COVID-19 ,” he said.
‘India’s fatality rate among the lowest’
During the joint press conference, the Union Health Ministry spokesperson said “Wrong and doubtful conclusion is bring drawn when we say that in terms of number of cases, our country is in the seventh place, the comparison should be made primary in terms of our country’s population.”
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“If we take 14 countries with total population close to that of India, in those countries, in comparison to India, 22.50% more cases have been 55.20 times more deaths have been reported there,” he added.
“The fatality rate is continuously declined. It was 3.30% on April 15, 3.25% on May 3, it went down to 3.15% on May 18 and it is now 2.82%. On April 15, the recovery rate was 11.42%, it was 26.59% on May 3, which went up to 38.29% on May 18 and now it is 48.07%.
“Fatality per lakh population is 0.41% in India, compared to 4.9% in the world,” he said.
‘We discuss contact-tracing with the States’
The Health Ministry said “We have been continuously discussing with the States about contact-tracing, identification of cases and treatment of the patients. With the increase in number of cases, it is up to the States to make appropriate arrangements.
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“As the number of cases approach 2 lakh, our primary focus remains on containment zones, identifying cases and contact tracing in the particular areas, as and when additional cases are found in other locations, to that extent the area of containtment zones is increased and those found positive are to be quarantined and treated as per protocol.
The Health Ministry also added that elderly people of above 60 years age and those with co-morbidities are the most vulnerable. “73% of deaths in India are people with co-morbidities,” he added.
“If the high-risk population develops any symptom, without panicking, they should take medical advice, seeking medical support from State or district helplines. They should act as per the doctor’s advice,” he said.
