Government data underestimates pandemic deaths.

• Excess deaths in 2021 were nearly six times more than the reported COVID-19 death toll, largely due to the delta variant of the SARS-COV-2 virus.

• Some states, like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, had higher excess deaths than the national average.

• The total number of registered deaths in India rose by 27% in 2021, largely due to the pandemic.

• Excess deaths were calculated using a three-step method: analyzing registered deaths from 2015 to 2019, estimating expected deaths for 2020 and 2021, and comparing these with actual registered deaths.

• Most excess deaths are likely due to COVID-19, with pandemic-related restrictions reducing deaths from other causes.

• The official COVID-19-related death count in 2020 was about 1.5 lakh, but 21.5 lakh ‘excess deaths’ were recorded in 2021, 6.5 times more than in 2020.

• The Hindu estimated an excess death multiple of 5.8 times in 11 states, the highest among nations with the most recorded fatalities due to the virus.

• Gujarat had the highest possible undercount of COVID-19 deaths in 2021, with over 2.5 lakh excess deaths.

• U.P. had the highest number of such deaths due to a large population, potentially not counting over 2.6 lakh COVID-19-related deaths.