Despite Population Of 1.3 Billion, India Able To Manage COVID-19 Relatively Well: Ministry Of Health

New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry on Thursday (July 9) said that despite a population of 1.3 billion people, India has been able to manage COVID-19 relatively well and the cases per million of the population in the country remains among the lowest in the world. Addressing a press conference, Rajesh Bhushan, OSD, Ministry of Health, said, “We are the second-most populous country of the world. Despite a population of 1.3 billion people, India has been able to manage COVID-19 relatively well. If you look at cases per million population, it still remains amongst lowest in the world.”

He said that we have 15 deaths per million population whereas we have countries where it is 40 times as much.

Also Read: Delhi Gears Up For A ‘COVID-19 War Room’ To Keep Eye On The Capital’s Fight Against Coronavirus As Cases Continue To Surge

Today we have 538 cases per million population. It’s as per World Health Organization (WHO) situation report. Case per million population in some countries are at least 16-17 times more than what it is in India. We have 15 deaths per million population whereas we have countries where it is 40 times as much, Mr Bhushan said.

When we talk of case load of COVID-19 in India, it is 2,69,000 people. This tells us that at the end of the day we’ve managed a situation where our health care infrastructure is not unduly burdened and is not creaking due to the pressure, added Mr Bhushan.

India reported the highest single-day spike of 24,879 new positive cases and 487 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of COVID-19 cases in the country to 7,67,296, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Out of the total number of cases, 2,69,789 are active, 4,76,378 have been cured/discharged/migrated and 21,129 have died.

Also Read: WHO Report Shows India’s COVID-19 Tally, Fatality Rate Per Million Population Lowest In World: Health Ministry

NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.