Anantnag: The Covid recovery rate in the month of September has fallen sharply in Kashmir, while there has been an uptick in the number of new cases of Covid infection being reported from across the ten districts of Kashmir division.
Even the overall recovery rate has dipped a few basis points to 98.2 percent, but September’s 90.6 percent is more than 7 percentage points less than it.
So far in the month of September, 2,851 new cases of Covid have been reported in Kashmir division. “In comparison, only 2,585 people have recovered in the month thus far. It is a recovery rate of just 90.6 percent,” an official privy to the data on Covid-19 told Kashmir Reader.
The uptick in the number of cases is quite evident as the number of new infections this month has already surpassed August’s tally by more than 600 cases.
As many as 872 new cases have been reported in the last one week only, more than 30 percent of the month’s tally.
“Obviously, when the numbers come thick and fast, the recovery rate drops. But the drop in the recovery rate this month has been substantial,” the official said.
Kashmir valley has so far reported 2,05,341 cases of Covid, of which 2,01,818 have already recovered, taking the cumulative recovery rate to 98.2 percent.
Among the people infected, 2,249 lost their lives, a death rate of 1.09 percent. Six of these people who have died have died this month of September.
“Which translates to a death rate of just 0.2 percent, much lower than the cumulative death rate of 1.09 percent. On this front we have been lucky,” the official said.
Another aspect still in check is the hospitalisation rate of the infected people. At present only 78 people remain in hospitals for the treatment of Covid-19 in the 25 Covid designated hospitals in Kashmir, with a bed capacity of 3,353.
At the same time, however, the increase in the number of active cases remains a cause of worry. On September 1, the total number of active cases in Kashmir was 1,014, and as of September 26, 1,247 people were positive for the virus.
“But that is a result of a slower recovery rate. The slower the recovery, the higher will be the number of active cases,” the official said.
The worry for the officials continues to be Srinagar district. It has 703 of the total active cases in Kashmir. The number on September 1 was only 523.
“180 of the 233 active cases added this month are in Srinagar district,” the official said.
The Srinagar district administration has recently identified some mini-containment zones in the city and imposed restrictions in those areas to contain the spread of the virus. Whether the spread can be contained or not remains a question.

Suhail A Shah