Southern states account for nearly half of India's total Covid infections

One in 5 Covid infections originated from southern states until a fortnight ago, shows data

Although India is recording nearly 250,000 cases daily for a week now, unlike the second wave, hospitalisations have been muted. However, in terms of the spread of infections, the country is mimicking the trends of the second wave.

As cases ebb in Maharashtra and Delhi, southern states are witnessing a surge in infections. A Business Standard analysis of daily infection figures shows that on January 27, the 5 southern states accounted for nearly half of India’s daily infection numbers.

Karnataka and Kerala account for one in three infections detected in the country, whereas every tenth case found in India is from Tamil Nadu.

One in 5 Covid infections originated from southern states until a fortnight ago. The share of infections in 5 states has doubled within a fortnight.

Analysis of daily infection numbers from the second wave indicates a similar trend. While Maharashtra accounted for the lion’s share of the country’s cases at the start of the second wave, until the first week of April, the centre of infections had shifted to the Southern states by June.

The share of southern states increased from 21.8 per cent on April 23, 2021, to 44.2 per cent on May 21, 2021. Their share further increased to 57.6 per cent by June 18.
 

During the first wave, however, the share of southern states lingered between 30-40 per cent.

One reason for the spurt in infections could be the rise of southern states in the country’s share of daily tests. Until a fortnight ago, southern states’ accounted for 17 per cent of the country’s daily Covid tests; on January 27, their share had increased to 23 per cent. Moreover, the share of RT-PCR tests in total testing was higher for most Southern states.
 

In the first and second waves, as cases declined in the rest of the country, infections started rising in northeastern states. Even though cases are rising in nNortheastern states, their share in the country’s daily infections remains less than 5 per cent.