Three weeks into Unlock-1, Covid-19 cases up by 136% in Uttar Pradesh

LUCKNOW: Three weeks into the unlock-1, Uttar Pradesh has recorded a jump of 136% in Covid-19 cases, according to an assessment of the state health department's data.
As per the Covid-19 surveillance data, the tally stood at 8,075 on May 31 which reached 19,064 on June 23 – an addition of 10,989 cases in about three weeks.

The unlock phase has also been marked by an increase of 170.9% in Covid-19 related deaths. While 217 deaths were reported since the onset of the infection till the end of lockdown, June alone saw 371 deaths.
The number of persons defeating the infection also went up by 150.1%. As many as 7,273 patients have been discharged during unlock-1 against 4,843 recoveries till the end of lockdown.
Health officials attribute the jump to better testing and underline prevention to keep trouble at bay. “The number of tests conducted till May 31 was 2,89,892 which reached 5,88,186 on Tuesday – the difference being 2,98,294. This means that samples sent for testing in the unlock period outnumbered the total samples sent so far,” said a senior government officer. A good number of these cases are also being linked to the situation in districts neighboring New Delhi. “About 17% of the Covid cases in the state went up only because of the two NCR districts Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad. It is for this that Union home minister Amit Shah convened a meeting of stakeholders across the NCR,” stated an additional CMO in western UP.
Poor compliance of Covid-19 protection and prevention methods is also to be blamed. This can be gauged from the number of people being fined for not wearing masks in the state. In May, 5,000 persons were fined in different cities according to information from the state home department. In Kanpur, 2,638 locals were fined for the same last week. Similarly, 711 persons were booked for not wearing masks in Gautam Budh Nagar in a special police drive last week.
The country is slowly heading towards the peak and this is being seen as the reason for surge. “Several studies have predicted that July will be the peak season for India and the nation is slowly going up the ladder. Though the situation in UP appears to be in control, the rise is clear in numbers. The average number of cases per day in UP has been over 500 in the past 10 days,” an epidemiologist said.
Experts in public health suggest that in addition to efforts to boost testing and screen patients early, the pattern demands a more aggressive implementation of the Covid-19 prevention rules formed by the state government. Also, a more convincing mass communication strategy is needed to make people adhere to the prevention norms.