UTTAR PRADESH
The panchayat polls, from April 15 to 29, may well have turned into a Corona spreader in rural Uttar Pradesh. Disregard for Covid protocols during the campaign, coupled with the arrival of migrants from other states to vote, has led to a spike in cases. Health department data shows that about 29 per cent of the 170,059 active cases on April 17 were reported from the 18 districts that voted in the first phase on April 15. On April 13, these districts had accounted for 21.3 per cent of active cases. On the same day, 716 new cases emerged in Kanpur Nagar, which voted in the first phase. On April 19, the second voting phase, 1,365 cases were reported. New cases in Hardoi rose from 56 on April 13 to 265 on April 19, and in Gautam Buddh Nagar from 402 on April 17 to 970 on April 24.
“Migrants who came from Maharashtra, Gujarat and Delhi may have been Covid carriers. Some candidates with Covid symptoms refused to isolate themselves,” says Dr Ramesh Chandra, medical officer, Purva community health centre, Unnao.
Sushila Devi, an Independent candidate for the pradhan’s post at Belhari panchayat in Gonda district, tested Covid positive and died on April 11. The death of two candidates deferred polling in the Lalganj and Atwa Mohal gram panchayats in Unnao. Priyanka Sen, a Samajwadi Party candidate for the zilla panchayat in Ayodhya district, died of Covid on April 18.
“In districts with high infections, chief medical officers have been asked to arrange for more hospital beds,” says Dr D.S. Negi, director general (health), UP. ■
Ashish Misra