CRS report rekindles debate on COVID-19 death undercounting in India
The gap between CRS data and official state-reported COVID-19 deaths is especially pronounced in Gujarat.
The gap between CRS data and official state-reported COVID-19 deaths is especially pronounced in Gujarat.
The gap between CRS data and official state-reported COVID-19 deaths is especially pronounced in Gujarat.
New Delhi: Amid widespread allegations --including those raised by the World Health Organisation -- that India significantly under-reported COVID-19 deaths, a latest report by the Civil Registration System (CRS) has sparked fresh debate. The report reveals that 21 lakh (2.1 million) more deaths were registered in the country in 2021 compared to 2020.
The CRS is the official, unified system for recording all births and deaths across India. According to its data, 81.15 lakh deaths were registered in 2020. In 2021, when the COVID-19 pandemic reached its peak in the country, the number surged to over 1.02 crore, marking a substantial increase of 21 lakh deaths within a year.
However, figures released by the Union Ministry of Health report only 3,32,468 deaths due to COVID-19 in 2021. This stark discrepancy of over 17 lakh unexplained excess deaths has raised serious doubts. This lack of clarity about what could account for such a dramatic rise in fatalities if not COVID-19 has now fuelled a major controversy.
The gap between CRS data and official state-reported COVID-19 deaths is especially pronounced in Gujarat. The state government reported only 5,809 COVID-19 deaths in 2021, whereas CRS data shows a staggering increase of 1,95,406 deaths compared to the previous year.
Similarly, Madhya Pradesh reported just 6,927 COVID-19 deaths in 2021, though CRS recorded an excess of 1,26,774 deaths. In West Bengal, the official count was 10,052, while CRS data indicates 1,52,094 additional deaths. Similar patterns of underreporting are observed in several other states, too, including Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Andhra Pradesh.
Kerala: a notable exception
Meanwhile, the difference between CRS data and officially reported COVID-19 deaths remained relatively lower in Kerala. The state reported 44,721 COVID-19 deaths in 2021, while CRS recorded 66,655 deaths, pointing to a relatively transparent reporting process. A few other states, such as Uttarakhand, Maharashtra and Assam, also appear to have maintained comparatively better alignment between CRS data and official COVID-19 death counts.