Even as the pandemic appears to be rapidly slowing down in most parts of India, the rate of decline in many of the smaller North Eastern st...
Even as the pandemic appears to be rapidly slowing down in most parts of India, the rate of decline in many of the smaller North Eastern states continues to be slow.
In some states such as Sikkim, Manipur and Meghalaya, the decline in the number of active cases has not resulted in the lowering of test positivity rates – the number of positive cases per 100 samples tested – suggesting that chains of transmissions have not been effectively terminated and the drop in absolute numbers is artificial and a result of low testing.
The test positivity rates in Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram are on the decline, but much higher than the national average. Tripura’s graph has marginally inched upwards too last week, but its positivity rate is still much less than these states.
Assam’s trajectory reflects the broader national trend to a large extent.
Manipur’s woes
The situation in Manipur is particularly concerning. After a steady dip since the last last week of May, the state’s test positivity rate has seen a rise in the last two weeks. On June 30, the state’s average test positivity rate calculated over the last seven days reached a high of 12.8% from the 8.8 % two weeks ago.
To make...
