Kolkata: Since the announcement of elections, nearly three months ago till Saturday, West Bengal's riverine, largely rural hinterland has seen a 48-fold jump in active COVID-19 cases, with medical experts attributing it to the unprotected poll rallies.Most medical professionals blame the mass gatherings at election rallies for the huge surge in the disease.On February 26, when the Election Commission announced the poll dates, West Bengal's number of active Covid cases was just 3,343, while it stood at 1.32 lakh on Saturday, a near 40-fold increase.However, the spread in districts, other than Kolkata, is far more.
From a mere 2,183 active cases on February 26, the number of active cases on May 15 has risen to 1.06 lakh, a worrying 48-fold.