Covid-19 tentacles reach UP's hinterland, deaths going unreported

Incidentally, a majority of the people, who died, had cough, fever and breathlessness, though they weren't tested for Covid-19

With very little testing and treatment facilities in smaller towns and districts, Covid-19 may be silently claiming lives of people in large numbers in the villages across Uttar Pradesh.

According to the reports over one hundred people have died after exhibiting symptoms of Covid-19 at several villages in Deoria, Ballia, Sultanpur, Hapur and some other districts in the past few days.

Reportedly, at least 32 people died at Andila and Baida villages in Deoria district in the past fortnight.

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Similarly, 25 people have died at Kheda village in Sultanpur district, about 150 kilometres from here in the past one month, the reports said. Testing has now started at Kheda, sources said.

Deaths have also been reported from Tatarpur village in Hapur district.

Incidentally, a majority of the people, who died, had cough, fever and breathlessness.

Reportedly, there was very little the villagers could do in such cases. There was virtually no facility at the local level to conduct RT-PCR tests or provide medical care to the patients requiring oxygen support.

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''At times we run short of testing kits....during the door-to-survey we only measure SpO2 level and temperature,'' a senior health official admitted.

As those, who died, had not been tested, it could not be said that they had Covid-19, said another official.

What makes the situation worse is that the dead were being cremated without following the Covid-19 protocols. It further contributes to the spread of the virus.

Officially the number of active cases in Uttar Pradesh has come down from a little over three lakh on April 30 to 2.45 lakh on Sunday. The state reported 26,847 new cases in the past 24-hours. As many as 298 people died from Covid in the same period.