Just around two per cent of coronavirus infections have emerged since Jan 30 from the country’s 112 most backward districts, NITI Aayog Chairman Amitabh Kant, who is heading the Empowered Group-6 of the government, said during the daily press briefing on the coronavirus situation in the country. Approximately 22 per cent of India’s population lives in these districts, said Kant.
The 112 aspirational districts of India are leading India’s fight against COVIDー19. We are working tirelessly along with the collectors & district administration to ensure safety and security of citizens,” Kant said during the press briefing.
According to government’s policy think tank NITI Aayog, the most backward districts of the country, under the Aspirational District Programme (ADP), are rated as such based on 49 socio-economic indicators under five fields, including health and nutrition, agriculture, financial inclusion and basic infrastructure among others. Each state has at least one district falling under the ADP.
Kant’s empowered committee deals with coordinating the responses of non-profits and other non-governmental organisation, including World Health Organisations (WHO) and several United Nations (UN) agencies, to the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
The Empowered group 6 has mobilized more than 92,000 NGOs/CSOs registered on NGO Darpan & made an appeal to assist states and districts in identifying hotspots, deputing volunteers & helping people in need,” the bureaucrat informed the mediapersons during his press briefing.
During his turn in the briefing, Union Health Ministry’s Joint Secretary Luv Agarwal revealed that the total coronavirus infections in the country stood at 42,533, with 2,053 cases having been reported in the last 24 hours. He revealed that 11,706 persons have been cured of coronavirus till now, which has brought up India’s recovery rate to 27.52 per cent.
“Till now, 11,706 people have been cured. In the last 24 hours. One thousand seventy-four (1,074) people have been cured. This is the highest number in terms of cured patients noted till date,” Agarwal noted.
One thousand three hundred and seventy-three (1,373) persons have succumbed to the virus in the country, as per government figures.