COVID19: Death toll crosses 1,500-mark in Gujarat with consistent mortality rate

Gujarat reported deaths of 28 more patients from coronavirus infection on Monday, taking the toll to 1,506, the second-highest number of deaths after Maharashtra, with a case fatality rate of over 6.2 percent which has been consistent for more than two months.

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Out of 28 deaths, Ahmedabad alone reported 23 fatalities, shooting its toll to 1,210 which is over 80% of total deaths (1,506) reported across the state till Monday. In terms of numbers, Ahmedabad is the second worst-hit city after Mumbai. After Ahmedabad in the state, Surat is the worst hit with over 100 deaths followed by Vadodara 43, Gandhinagar 21, Aravalli 13, among others.

What surprises even doctors in Gujarat is the consistent case fatality rate for over two months now-Ahmedabad over 7% and state's over 6%. Last week, a group of expert doctors had stated in a press conference that "it is impossible to find out the exact reason behind this high mortality rate."

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The state government has been claiming that in majority of cases the patients were suffering from pre-existing diseases or had comorbid conditions.

Meanwhile, the state's tally of confirmed cases breached the 24,000-mark after it recorded 514 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking the cumulative total to 24,104.

The tally of Ahmedabad reached 16,967 after it registered 327 confirmed, out of the state's total 514. Out of 24,104 cases, 16,672 have been cured and discharged from hospital till Monday evening.