India's COVID-19 Mortality: The Gap Between Official Data and Excess Deaths
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Health (Pandemics, WHO), Governance (Census, Civil Registration System - CRS, National Family Health Survey - NFHS), Social Issues.
Mains:
GS Paper 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health; Government policies and interventions.
GS Paper 3: Disaster and disaster management.
Key Highlights from the News
The actual death rate in India during the COVID-19 pandemic is much higher than official figures, according to data from the Civil Registration System (CRS).
Excess mortality refers to the number of deaths exceeding what is ordinarily expected during a disaster.
According to CRS data, 76.4 lakh deaths were recorded in 2019, while this increased to 1.02 crore in 2021. This is significantly higher than the official COVID death toll of 5.33 lakh.
These figures are closer to the World Health Organization's (WHO) estimate of 47 lakh.
There are several reasons for the undercounting of deaths in India:
Incomplete death registration: According to NFHS-5, 29% of deaths in India are not registered.
Deaths not medically certified: Only 23.4% of deaths in the country receive medical certification of cause of death.
Indirect deaths: Deaths not directly caused by COVID but due to the pandemic's consequences (lockdowns, lack of hospital facilities) are not accounted for.
The article argues that India's mortality surveillance architecture urgently needs to be reformed to understand the true impact of the pandemic and prepare for future crises.
The article also suggests that a comprehensive study should be conducted in the next Census by including specific questions about deaths.
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