21 day Lockdown impact: Trajectory of coronavirus cases in India flattens slightly

New Delhi, Mar 30: As the number of Coronavirus positive cases globally is nearing the 700,000 mark, India's three-week-long lockdown, the world's second most populous country, to combat the pandemic have seen 'flattening the curve'. In other words, preventing and delaying the spread of the virus so that large portions of the population aren't sick at the same time.

The latest data from the Johns Hopkins University, Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) shows there is a slower increase compared to what it was in the previous 24-hour-period.

According to CSSE analysis, the Growth trajectory of coronavirus cases in India have slowed down a bit. In CSSE analysis, with earlier growth rate and without lockdown the number of estimated cases of COVID19 in India was supposed to cross 25,000 mark by 21st day.

The post lockdown trajectory reflects it to be somewhere between 5,000 to 6,000 by 21st day. However, fight against COVID19 is still not over and full support to lockdown is required.

As India entered day 6 of 21-day lockdown, the number of confirmed cases in the country rose to 1,024 including 48 foreign nationals on Sunday, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Of them, 95 have been cured or discharged with one migrated case.

Maharashtra is the worst-hit state and has reported 186 coronavirus positive cases, followed by Kerala at 182. The number of deaths due to the infection stood at 27. Deaths have so far been reported from Maharashtra (6), Gujarat (5), Karnataka (3), Madhya Pradesh (2), Delhi (2), Jammu and Kashmir (2) and one each from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Bihar, Punjab, West Bengal, and Himachal Pradesh.

Testing criteria in India have been stringent so far and are gradually being relaxed even as new labs begin testing.

Narendra Modi had announced a three-week lockdown for all of India that has now killed 25 Indians and infected more than 900 others. "To save India and every Indian, there will be a total ban on venturing out of your homes," he said in a national address.

However, the number of cases will continue to mount over the coming days as testing expands, even if the lockdown has lowered the rate of transmission of the virus. The full impact of the lockdown can be gauged only after a few weeks.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases has exceeded 700,000 globally, according to the latest tally from Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE).

There have been more than 704,000 confirmed cases worldwide, with 33,509 deaths, an interactive map maintained by the CSSE showed.

According to the update, the United States has the most confirmed cases, which have surged to more than 132,000, while Italy has reported more than 10,000 deaths, the highest number among all nations and regions.