Covid: MP's positivity rate drops from 14% to 3.3% in just over 10 days

The COVID-19 positivity rate in Madhya Pradesh has dropped to 3.39 per cent from 13.8 per cent on May 13, according to the state government.

Talking to reporters here on Tuesday, MP Home Minister Narottam Mishra, who is also the state government's spokesperson, said the positivity rate in 11 districts of the state is less than one per cent, while the rate in four districts is above five per cent.

"The positivity rate has come down to 3.39 per cent in the state," he said.

On May 13, he had said the COVID-19 positivity rate in the state was 13.8 per cent.

"On Tuesday, the total number of positive cases reported is 4,222 while the count of those who recovered is 7,873. The COVID-19 recovery rate in the state is 92.6 per cent," Mishra said on Tuesday.

On May 23, the recovery rate was 91.45 per cent, according to the minister.

The positivity rate is less than one per cent in 11 districts - Bhind, Alirajpur, Mandla, Jhabua, Agar, Dindori, Khandwa, Barwani, Singrauli, Kanti and Narsinghpur, while it is above five per cent in Indore, Bhopal, Sagar and Neemuch, Mishra said.

"Considering this, the corona curfew is gradually being relaxed in a number of districts in the state," he said.

The state government on Monday allowed "restricted relaxations" in the 'corona curfew' in districts where the positivity rate was less than five per cent.

Mishra also alleged that those part of the (Congress-led) United Progressive Alliance (UPA) had earlier spread false information about vaccines against COVID-19, but now they are saying that they are not getting doses for inoculation.

On Monday, a war of words broke out between Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and state Congress president Kamal Nath following registration of an FIR against the latter for allegedly creating panic over the COVID-19 pandemic through his remarks.

Chouhan asked Congress president Sonia Gandhi to take action against Nath for his "Indian variant" and other remarks related to the pandemic.

On the other hand, Nath said an FIR cannot suppress his voice and asserted he will keep fighting for people and raise issues of public interest.

To a question on the attack on a vaccination team in Ujjain district on Monday, Mishra urged citizens to cooperate with the health teams and police personnel who were enforcing the COVID-19 norms for their benefit.

The state government has also made the facility for on-the-spot registration of people in the 18 and above age category for vaccination, he added.