The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath seems to be determined to fight the Covid-19 pandemic in the state and the dedicated, multi-pronged approach of the Uttar Pradesh government to tackle the epidemic has yielded exemplary results in the state.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is himself is on the front lines, have ensured that the government has created enough medical facilities to overcome the crisis. Yogi Aditayanath, who recently recovered from Covid-19, is personally visiting hospitals and villages to review the healthcare facilities and passing necessary orders.
The Uttar Pradesh government has followed the ‘3T’ formula of tracing, testing and treatment aggressively to tackle the rise in cases in both urban and rural areas. As a result, Uttar Pradesh has become the first state in the country to carry out as many as 3 lakhs Covid tests in a single day. The Uttar Pradesh government has conducted more than 4.65 crore tests since the start of the pandemic, which is the highest in the country.
The data suggests that nearly 45% of the total tests being done in the state are RT PCR, while 2% are through TruNat method. The remaining are undertaken through rapid antigen kits.
Aggressive testing has been the mainstay of UP’s Covid-19 combat strategy. According to the officials in UP, the state has now created a capacity for undertaking more than 1.5 lakh RT PCR tests per day. More than 65% of the samples collected in the state are from rural areas.
As per data from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Uttar Pradesh accounts for almost 14% of the total tests done in the country. In addition, more than 1 crore Covid-19 tests have been conducted in the UP since April 1 this year.
Uttar Pradesh govt anticipated the second wave, created infrastructure to tackle the pandemic
In anticipation of the second wave, the Chief Minister has instructed officials to be prepared, and arrangements were made to continue aggressive testing to identify hotspots at the earliest. Based on tracing and testing, micro-containment zones were set up to nip the problem in the bud.
Interestingly, despite aggressive testing, Uttar Pradesh has recorded a low number of fresh cases compared to any other states.
Uttar Pradesh has seen only a marginal increase in the cases in the second wave. On Saturday, Uttar Pradesh has recorded as many as 5,964 new cases took the overall tally to 16,65,176 cases. It is important to note that UP is the country’s most populous state, with more than 24 crore people living in 75 districts.
Considering its huge population, the fresh cases recorded in the state is one of the lowest in the country. Of the total cases, 15,51,716 have recovered, with 17,540 recoveries in the past 24 hours.
The state is now left with under a lakh active cases. Only 94,000 active cases in Uttar Pradesh till Saturday, of which nearly 80,000 are under home isolation. The active case ratio in the state is less than 5.5 per cent, almost half the national average which is at 10 per cent. The active case ratio is the total active cases in the state compared to the total cases recorded.
The higher active case ratio indicates a well-functioning health care system, particularly the treatment provided to the Covid-19 patients in a particular state. Despite having a larger population, the Uttar Pradesh government has managed to keep its positivity rate low, at the same keeping its active case ratio in check.
According to the state government’s data, the active cases in the state have come down by over 62 per cent since hitting a peak on April 30. The intervention by the state government has led to faster recoveries, outnumbering fresh cases in the last nearly three weeks, and the case positivity rate has dropped to 2.4 per cent. The positivity rate was around 19 per cent during the peak.
Low death rate, faster vaccination in Uttar Pradesh
The number of deaths has recorded a decline after several days with 218 losing lives in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 18,978.
Uttar Pradesh is also at the forefront in terms of vaccinating its people. Till Saturday, the state has vaccinated more than 1.62 crore people across the state. On Saturday alone, Uttar Pradesh vaccinated nearly 2,13,028 people with the two available Indian-made vaccines, which is yet again the highest in the country.
The successful strategy of Uttar Pradesh to trace, test and treat, followed by efficient lockdown, have helped in flattening the Covid curve in the state. The government is also providing free ration to nearly 15 crore people of the state and Rs 1,000 as financial aid to lakhs of daily wage earners whose livelihoods have been hit by the pandemic. Besides, the government is also providing free Covid vaccines to all.