Gujarat and Punjab have higher mortality rates than Maharashtra
The death toll due to COVID-19 in India crossed 100 on April 6, and has reached 114 today. Nearly 40% (45) of these deaths have been reported in Maharashtra, which also has the most number of cases at 748.
Of the 31 states and union territories that have reported COVID-19 cases thus far, casualties have been reported in 17. All these states, except Gujarat and Maharashtra, have reported fewer than 10 deaths, and three states--Bihar, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh--have had only one each.
In Gujarat, 12 of its 144 patients have died--a mortality rate of 8.3%. This is the highest rate among states that have reported multiple deaths, our analysis of data from the health ministry shows.
![](https://www.indiaspend.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/state-deaths-2.png)
Punjab, with 76 cases (roughly half Gujarat’s case numbers) and six deaths (half of Gujarat’s), clocks a mortality rate of 7.9%--the second highest in the country. The rates in Punjab and Gujarat are over three times the mortality rate nationwide (2.6%).
Maharashtra, which has the most number of cases, has a mortality rate of 6%. Delhi and Tamil Nadu, which have more than 500 cases each, have mortality rates of 1.3% and 0.9%, respectively.
Delhi reported its first case on March 2 and Tamil Nadu on March 7. Punjab and Gujarat reported their first cases relatively later on March 9 and March 20 respectively.
The recent spurt of Tablighi Jamaat-related cases has increased the overall number of cases in Delhi and Tamil Nadu, and lowered their mortality rates. In Delhi, the cases increased by nearly 82% from 97 on March 31 to 523 today. In Tamil Nadu, the increase was 88% from 74 to 621.
The fewest patient deaths have been recorded in Kerala, 2 of 327 patients, or a mortality rate of 0.6%. Kerala was the first to report a COVID19 case in India, on January 30, 2020, and accounted for the highest or second highest number of cases until April 2 when Tamil Nadu and Delhi started reporting cases related to Tablighi Jamaat.
(Compiled by Shreya Raman)