Village pradhan says 37 died of Covid; UP govt blames old-age

Amid allegations of under-reporting of Covid 19 deaths in Uttar Pradesh, a 'pradhan' (panchayat chief) of a village in Baghpat district, about 450 kilometres from Lucknow, claimed that as many as 37 people of his village died after exhibiting symptoms of coronavirus within a month.

The pradhan of Lumba village prepared a list of 37 people, who died between April 18 and May 15, and uploaded the same on social media. It went viral within no time sending the district health officials into a tizzy.

A team of health official, which rushed to the village after the list went viral, claimed that a majority of deaths had been caused by old age-related illness.

Also read: Covid carnage: Are states lying about death figures?

"Only two-three people died from Covid... rest died from age-related illness," a senior health official in Baghpat claimed.

He said that samples were being taken in the village for testing and medical kits were also provided to a few ill people.

The pradhan, on the other hand, said that almost all those, who died during the period, had cough and cold. "No testing was conducted in the village till then," he added.

Also read: Shallow graves and bodies in the river: Covid-19 hits India's villages

The pradhan also said that as many as 200 people of the village, which had a population of 12,000, had been suffering from cough and cold and other illness.

The opposition leaders have alleged that the UP government has been trying to hide the number of deaths from Covid-19. Sharp discrepancies were found in the death figures released officially and those cremated or buried.