India logs fewer COVID-19 cases but Kerala sees no respite

Even as the country is witnessing a gradual decline in active COVID-19 cases, deaths and test positivity rate, the infections have shown a surge in Kerala.

The southern state accounted for 45 per cent or 6,036 of the total 13,203 active cases reported in the country on Monday.

The state which has logged in 73,121 cases so far, has been reporting highest daily COVID-19 cases in the country for the past few days even though the same for worst-affected states like Maharashtra have seen a decline.

Besides, Kerala has a positivity rate of 12.48 per cent against the national average of 1.9 per cent.

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According to NDTV, 11 districts including Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Alleppey, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta have been reporting a spike in cases, mostly due to poor testing and contact tracing.

A source told NDTV that the state government despite the recommendations of a central team has not increased testing in worst-affected districts.

“Kerala has not been following contact tracing effectively. At least 4-5 contact tracing is necessary per case. Clinical management also needs to be strengthened in the state,” the source told NDTV.

Dr Sulphi Noohu, a member of the central committee told the website that the testing in the state continues to hover between 40,000 and 60,000 even though the Indian Medical Association (IMA) had recommended to increase the daily testing to 1 lakh.

The state government, however, claims that the current numbers are not unexpected and that critical medical services are not under pressure, an indication that the cases are under control.

“We don’t look at only the test positivity rate. We look at the hospital admission rate, ICU admission and ventilator occupancy. If all this seems to increase, then it is a cause of great concern. But that’s not the case,” Dr Mohammed Asheel, the member of a state government-formed COVID-19 core committee told NDTV.