With the second highest caseload of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) globally, India continues to post the highest number of recoveries from the infection.
India accounts for 21% of all the recoveries reported worldwide, even as the country accounts for 18.6% of the global share of cases.
United States accounts for the highest number of cases reported globally, accounting for 21.7% of all the cases, but accounts for 18.4% of the total global recoveries, according to data shared by the Union health ministry.
The higher recoveries reported in India are largely owing to fewer deaths due to the infection. India’s case fatality ratio – fraction of people who died of the infection among those who tested positive – is one of the lowest in the world and currently stands at 1.56%, lower than the global average of 2.97%. And, much lower than countries like Mexico where the current CFR stands at about 10.9% and United Kingdom where it stands at 9.17%. The other countries where the CFR is lower than the global average are Russia with a CFR of 1.76%, South Africa with 2.49% and United States with 2.87%, the data from the ministry shows.
“India has consistently been reporting one of the lowest CFR across the world. Studies are going on to figure out why, but scientists think it could be because of a younger population, our previous exposure to other coronavirus infections, the virus having mutated to cause more infections but fewer deaths, people having been vaccinated with BCG (anti-tuberculosis vaccine). The current decline in deaths could also be because the treatment modalities have been standardized now,” said Dr Neeraj Gupta, professor of pulmonary medicine at Safdarjung Hospital.
The higher recoveries and fewer new cases being reported across the country has also resulted in the drop in the number of active cases or those with current infections. The government needs to focus on the active cases as they are the ones who have to be in isolation and might need medical intervention. The number of active cases has gone down consecutively for 12 days now.
After reaching about 100,000 cases being reported from the country each day, the number of new cases has dipped to 79,000 reported as on Friday, according to the health ministry. Over 78% of these new cases are being reported from 10 states – Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Delhi, Chhattisgarh.
Of the total deaths reported on Friday, 84% are also from ten states – Kerala and Odisha which have reported a high number of cases are not among the ten states with high fatalities, whereas Madhya Pradesh and Haryana which are not among the ten with highest number of cases are among the ten that have reported high fatalities due to the infection.
Maharashtra continues to report the highest number of cases and deaths, accounting for 25% of all the new cases and 39.6% of the deaths, the data shows.
