Covid Crisis: Uttarakhand Reports Highest Mortality Rate Among Himalayan States

Uttarakhand tops the chart followed by Nagaland, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim and Manipur.

Representative Photo: PTI

Dehradun: Amongst all the Himalayan states in the country, Uttarakhand has the highest Covid-19 mortality rate of two per cent, as recorded on Sunday.

As many as 11 states across the country have registered high Covid-19 death rate, out of which six are Himalayan states.

From these, Uttarakhand tops the chart followed by Nagaland, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim and Manipur.

According to a study carried out by Anoop Nautiyal, founder of the non-profit Social Development for Communities Foundation, the high death rate in the Himalayan states is a matter of great concern.

"The human loss in the second wave of the Covid-19 has also opened the door to enhancing public health system in the Himalayan states.

The situation is more or less the same in all the Himalayan states in terms of public health," Nautiyal told ANI.

"The problem of shortage of doctors, skilled staff, and resources is the same in all the Himalayan states. The central and state governments should think seriously about this, because this concern is not only about the health of the people living in the Himalayan states, but also questions the health of the tourists and devotees who travel and visit these states every year in several crores," he added.

Punjab has the highest Covid-19 mortality rate across the country with 2.6 per cent followed by Uttarakhand with 2 per cent, Nagaland with 1.9 per cent, Maharashtra, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Goa and Andaman, and Nicobar with 1.7 per cent, Sikkim and Manipur with 1.6 per cent.

As per the state health bulletin, Uttarakhand reported 619 new positive cases, 2,531 recoveries, and 16 deaths on Saturday. The death toll of the state stands at 6,664.