Coronavirus
Representative image.

Scientists have estimated that coronavirus cases could rise to 13 lakh in India by mid-May if the current growth trend of COVID-19 cases continues.

“While India so far has done well in controlling the number of confirmed cases compared to other countries, the country is critically missing a key component in this assessment- the number of truly affected cases,” a report compiled by COV-IND-19 Study Group said.

“This factor depends on the extent of testing, the accuracy of the test results, and the frequency and scale of testing of people who may have been exposed but do not show symptoms,” the report added.

“The number of people tested in India has been relatively small so far,” the report added.

“In the absence of widespread testing, it is impossible to quantify the magnitude of community transmission,” the report added.

“Thus our current estimates are at best underestimates for India based on early phase data,” the report further added.