Congress to take ‘crowdsourcing’ path to estimate Covid deaths
Subodh Ghildiyal / TNN / May 28, 2021, 06:08 IST
NEW DELHI: Amid conflicting figures of Covid deaths emerging in official and media claims, Congress is considering “crowdsourcing” to reach what it says will be a rough estimate of fatalities on account of the second Covid wave.
The party is calling people over phone asking to give an estimate of Covid deaths in their village or neighbourhood in the last two months. They are being asked to give a figure on the basis of three options laid out and also the option of saying “don’t know”.
AICC data analytics head Praveen Chakravarty called it “crowdsourcing of estimates or information”. Sources said the survey is being done in around 80 districts across Bihar, UP, MP and Haryana, all governed by NDA.
Chakravarty said asking a large number of people about rough estimates in the area of their residence results in an average that is good enough to provide the big picture. “It is a scientific technique,” Chakravarty said.
While the government is providing Covid death toll, the figures are a source of controversy. Congress’s Rahul Gandhi tweeted on Thursday: “ ‘Positivity’ is a PR stunt to hide the actual number of corona deaths that the PM’s actions have caused”.
AICC is also conducting surveys on the people’s attitude towards Covid vaccines and on immediate needs — food, hospitals, income, etc.
Subodh Ghildiyal / TNN / May 28, 2021, 06:08 IST
NEW DELHI: Amid conflicting figures of Covid deaths emerging in official and media claims, Congress is considering “crowdsourcing” to reach what it says will be a rough estimate of fatalities on account of the second Covid wave.
The party is calling people over phone asking to give an estimate of Covid deaths in their village or neighbourhood in the last two months. They are being asked to give a figure on the basis of three options laid out and also the option of saying “don’t know”.
AICC data analytics head Praveen Chakravarty called it “crowdsourcing of estimates or information”. Sources said the survey is being done in around 80 districts across Bihar, UP, MP and Haryana, all governed by NDA.
Chakravarty said asking a large number of people about rough estimates in the area of their residence results in an average that is good enough to provide the big picture. “It is a scientific technique,” Chakravarty said.
While the government is providing Covid death toll, the figures are a source of controversy. Congress’s Rahul Gandhi tweeted on Thursday: “ ‘Positivity’ is a PR stunt to hide the actual number of corona deaths that the PM’s actions have caused”.
AICC is also conducting surveys on the people’s attitude towards Covid vaccines and on immediate needs — food, hospitals, income, etc.
