Kerala Has Lowest Death Rate among Major COVID States

Out of the total COVID-19 cases in India, five states – Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala and Uttar Pradesh – have contributed at least 60% of the cases. As of November 27, as many as 99,51,109 have tested positive for COVID-19 since January 30 this year.

Of this list, Maharashtra has the maximum number of active cases, with 89,025 as of November 27. Kerala is the second with 64014 cases. Active COVID-19 cases in Delhi, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan were 38,181, 24,617, 25,639 and 28,183 respectively.

However, unlike other states, Kerala, which had successfully contained the spread of the virus in the initial two phases of the pandemic, has been reporting a decline in the daily number of cases for the past few weeks.

Daily number of Covid-19 cases in Kerala for past 30 days. Kerala Govt. Dashboard

“The pandemic curve is plateauing now. The state has witnessed a natural surge in number of cases, as anticipated by the health system. But we have succeeded in delaying that surge and the health system in the state has gotten enough time to prepare while well anticipating the spike,” an epidemiologist who works with the Covid cell of the state, had told NewsClick earlier.

“Unlike other states, the health system in Kerala could accommodate everyone although the number had surged. We have been managing the pandemic pretty well and now the pandemic curve is plateauing,” the epidemiologist added.

While Kerala is among the states that has recorded the maximum number of cases, the death rate in the state is pretty low. As of November 27, the total number of cases in the state is 5,87,707. As many as 2,171 COVID-19 patents have succumbed to the novel coronavirus since January 30, the day when the first case was recorded in the country. Though the number of cases surged in October, the state health machinery has succeeded in maintaining a death rate of 0.37%, far less than the national death rate of 1.37%.

Death Rate as of November 27 (based on data from Ministry of Health and Family Welfare)

From the above table, death rates in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan are far below than the national average of 1.37%.

The COVID-19 case tally touched 5,87,707 in Kerala on Friday, with the addition of 3,966 fresh cases while the death toll rose to 2,171 with 23 deaths. A total of 4,544 people have recovered from the disease, taking the total number of those cured in the state to 5,21,522. Currently, 63,885 patients were undergoing treatment for COVID-19 in the state.

“Out of the total cases today, 3,348 were cases of local transmission and the source of infection was unknown for 488. Of those diagnosed, 81 have arrived from outside the state. There were 49 health workers among the infected,” state Health Minister K.K. Shailaja said.

Cumulative Summary for Kerala

In a release, the minister said 39,108 samples have been tested so far, and the positivity rate is 10.14%. A total of 61,14,029 samples had been sent for testing. Among districts with a high number of cases, Malappuram topped the list at 612 followed by Thrissur (525) Ernakulam (397) Kozhikode (374) and Palakkad (351). Kasargod was the lowest at 96.