Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai account for a third of daily Covid-19 cases

The three cities account for a tenth of the country's daily tests

On Tuesday, India reported over 3,000 cases for the sixth consecutive day. In total the country registered 3,714 Covid-19 infections. On June 6, it had reported 4,518 infections. While Kerala and Maharashtra lead the country, accounting for two out of every three infections, a Business Standard analysis found that the share of metros in daily infections was high again.

While Kerala, Maharashtra, Delhi, and Karnataka accounted for four in every five infections, three cities—Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru—accounted for over a third of daily infections in the country.

Two months ago, the three cities accounted for 18.5 per cent of the country’s daily cases. As cases kept declining across the country, the share of these cities kept increasing.

Further analysis shows that in the case of Karnataka and Maharashtra, most of the surge has come from their capitals. Of the 301 cases registered in Karnataka on Monday, 291 or 97 per cent were from Bengaluru. On the other hand, in the case of Maharashtra, two-thirds of the cases emanated from Mumbai.

The share of tests among these cities is also higher. The medical bulletin of Karnataka shows that the state conducted 21,413 tests on Monday, of which 14.279 were conducted in Bengaluru. In the case of Maharashtra, Mumbai accounted for 42 per cent of the tests conducted in the state.

As a proportion of the total country’s tests, the three cities accounted for nearly 10 per cent of the country’s daily tests.

Analysis of data from the ministry of health and family welfare shows that Mumbai’s positivity rate for the last week was 9 per cent. In contrast, Delhi’s was 3.47 per cent, whereas Bengaluru’s was 2.06 per cent. India’s positivity rate was a little over a per cent during this period.