Government Challenges WHO's COVID-19 Mortality Estimates

The Indian government criticized the WHO’s mathematical modeling approach for estimating COVID-19 deaths, citing inconsistencies and erroneous assumptions. The Central Council of Health and Family Welfare has objected to the WHO's methodology, emphasizing India’s robust Civil Registration System. Guidelines for accurate COVID-19 death reporting have been issued.

The Indian government has raised serious concerns about the World Health Organization's (WHO) mathematical modeling approach to estimate COVID-19 deaths, terming it inconsistent and based on erroneous assumptions. This was conveyed to Parliament on Tuesday.

Minister of State for Health, Anupriya Patel, in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, highlighted that the mortality figures reported by Indian states and Union territories do not align with the WHO estimates or those published in international medical journals. Patel noted that between January 1, 2020, and December 31, 2021, WHO's model estimated deaths from all causes, including COVID-19, but suffered from significant limitations, according to international medical journals.

The Central Council of Health and Family Welfare has unanimously passed a resolution against the WHO's methodology and authorized the Union health minister to express India's collective dissatisfaction. Patel emphasized that India's robust Civil Registration System (CRS) recorded a substantial increase in death registrations in 2020, not solely due to COVID-19, and that detailed guidelines for reporting COVID-19 deaths have been issued to ensure accuracy.

(With inputs from agencies.)