India overtakes USA to become No.1 in terms of global COVID 19 recoveries

NEW DELHI, Sep19: The union health ministry has claimed India of achieving a global landmark by registering the highest COVID-19 recoveries overtaking even the United States which was on the top spot so far. India has reported the highest number of total recoveries with more than 42 lakh (42,08,431) COVID patients recovered and discharged. India now accounts for close to 19% of the total global recoveries. This has strongly pushed the national Recovery Rate to nearly 80% (79.28%), an official spokesman of the central government said.

The total Recoveries have demonstrated a steep exponential rise.

Amidst the dark cloud of the Covid-19 tally in India racing past 5.3 million on Saturday after over 93,000 cases were registered in a single day and the death toll also increasing to 85,619 after 1,247 fatalities were registered during the same period, the silver lining was that it was also the day when India recorded the highest single day recoveries with 95,880 patient having recovered and discharged from hospitals in the last 24 hours.

The spokesman claimed that the Centre-led focussed, calibrated, responsive & effective measures of early identification through high & aggressive testing, prompt surveillance & tracking coupled with standardised high quality clinical care have together resulted in this global achievement.

According to the government records, 90% of the new recovered cases had been reported from 16 States/UTs, while the 90 per cent of the total recovered cases were reported from 15 states and UTs. And of the total recovered cases, more than 60 per cent has been reported from five States, viz. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.

Maharashtra has alone contributed more than 22,000 (23%) and Andhra Pradesh has contributed more than 11,000 (12.3%) to the single day recoveries.

The spokesman claimed that the union ministry of health and family welfare had been from time to time issuing comprehensive Standard of Care clinical management and treatment protocols.  Drawing from global emerging evidence, these have been regularly revised and strengthened. India had allowed for rational use of ‘Investigational Therapies’ like Remdesevir, convalescent plasma and Tocilizumab and adopted measures such pruning, use of high flow oxygen, non-invasive ventilation, use of steroids and anti-coagulants to aid recovery in COVID patients. Supervised home/facility isolation for mild and moderate cases, improved services of the ambulances for ferrying patients for prompt and timely treatment have enabled seamless and efficient patient management resulting in record recovery rates.

AIIMS, New Delhi has handheld the States/UTs for enhancing the clinical management skills of doctors in the ICUs, through the ‘National e-ICU on COVID-19 Management’ and Centers of Excellence. Held twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday, the sessions have aided in substantial increase of the total nationwide recovered cases and maintaining a low and steadily declining mortality rate.  19 such National e-ICUs have been held covering 249 hospitals of 28 States/UTs across the country, till date, the spokesman said.

He said the Centre had been regularly reviewing the assistance provided to the State/UT governments. Several high level multi-specialist Central teams have been deployed in States/UTs. These support them for strengthening Containment, Surveillance, Testing and efficient Clinical Management. The Centre had also been regularly reviewing availability of medical oxygen in the hospitals/health facilities. These had played a critical intervention role in India’s high recoveries and maintained a low Case Fatality Rate (CFR), which currently stands at 1.61%, the spokesman claimed.

Globally, over 30 million have been infected, of which, over 20 million have recovered so far. At least 950,434 people have succumbed to the virus so far.

Meanwhile, After the issue of poor availability and black marketing of oxygen in some states was raised in Parliament, the Ministry of Home Affairs had asked states not to block movement or supply of oxygen as it was essential to fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. In a letter to chief secretaries of all states, Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla had said some states were curbing the supply of oxygen by issuing orders under Essential Commodities Act or Epidemic Diseases Act.

Despite better recovery rates, the increasing number of Members of Parliament falling victim to pandemic has underlined the risk of continuing the current monsoon session till the scheduled date of October 1. More than 30 MPs, including Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel, have tested positive in the recent days. The spokesman said the current session could be curtailed to the bare minimum.

(Manas Dasgupta)