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Bihar recorded 74,808 deaths due to 'unexplained causes' amid second wave; is state underreporting Covid-19 toll?

The argument is backed by the huge difference in deaths recorded in the state for the first five months in 2019 and 2021
Last Updated 20 June 2021, 11:19 IST

After the Bihar government revised its official Covid-19 death toll for 2021, an analysis by NDTV raises question on the state's accuracy in counting the Covid-19 deaths as almost 10 times more deaths due to "unexplained causes" were found in a new set of data for January to May 2021, which somewhat coincides with the second Covid-19 wave in India.

From January to May 2021, 74,808 people died due to unexplained reasons in Bihar, while the official Covid-19 death toll in the state for the same period was 7,717, according to the report.

Recently, the Bihar government had put out a revised Covid-19 death figure as 7,717 for January-May 2021 after adding 3,951 more to the earlier announced figure. Since then, questions were raised if the state is undercounting the Covid-19 death numbers.

The argument is backed by the huge difference in deaths recorded in the state for the first five months in 2019 and 2021. While around 1.3 lakh people had died in the state in January-May 2019, the number rose to about 2.2 lakh in the first five months of 2021, according to data from the state's Civil Registration System as reported by the publication. Majority of this excess fatalities were reported in May this year, the publication added.

Apart from Bhar, reports of possible underreporting of Covid-19 deaths came in from other states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, etc. as well.

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(Published 20 June 2021, 10:53 IST)

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