Data based on the Daily/Weekly Bulletins issued by Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), Department of Health and Family Welfare, Nagaland. (Photo in plot area) Sample being collected from an individual during a random COVID-19 testing exercise by the District Task Force in Kohima in April 2021. (File Photo) *As on April 24, 2022.
Morung Express News
Dimapur | April 24
Nearly 23 months after detection of first 3 cases, , Nagaland became officially ‘COVID-19 free’ for the first time with zero ‘active’ case on April 24, analysis of official data highlighted.
“Nagaland is no longer a green zone” then read The Morung Express’ front page headline on May 26, 2020, a day after Nagaland officially reported its first three confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Sunday's ‘COVID-19 free’ status comes exactly on the 676th day since the first officially confirmed cases or after nearly 1 year and 11 months.
The data is as per the official figure and accordingly, the existence of undetected cases cannot be rule out either due to non-testing or other factors.
Regardless, the detection of cases has been intermittent and low in the state, after monthly samples positivity rate peaked at 17% in May, 2021, gradually falling thereafter.
By September 2021, the monthly positivity rate fell to 2.3%. Though there was a marginal increase to 2.6% in October 2021, it declined to 1.8% in November and 0.7% in December, informed the ‘COVID-19 Weekly Bulletin’ issued by the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), Department of Health and Family Welfare.
While the active cases were just at 63, on the eve of New Year on December 31, there was a big scare on January as monthly test positivity rate jumped to 10.9% in January 2022, but it fell to 6.0% in February and further to 0.7% in March.
With just 13 fresh cases this month as of April 24, the positivity rate is further expected to fall this month if new fresh cases are not detected.
In April, as of Sunday, a total of 2,373 samples were tested and the monthly test positivity stood at 0.54.
With this, Nagaland COVID-19 status as of April 24, the cumulative positive cases was 35,488, out of which active cases stood at 0; recoveries at 33,244, while 1,484 cases have migrated.
A total of 756 persons have succumbed to COVID-19, while four deaths are designated as ‘Non Covid Deaths (with COVID-19 positivity).’
