BENGALURU: More than 1.2 crore people from 18 different categories are on the frontline as ‘ Covid Warriors ’ in India’s battle against the pandemic, but some states are more dependent on less-trained/qualified people than others thanks to a long-standing imbalance in the country.Late last week, the Centre made public the details of “covid warriors” according to which 1.2 crore people — doctors (dentists and vets included), nurses, pharmacists, lab volunteers, trained health professionals , ASHA and Anganwadi workers, NSS and NCC members among others — are working to fight the pandemic. The data doesn’t include waste collectors.However, TOI analysis shows that of the 1.2 crore warriors, only 42.7 lakh or 34% are doctors, nurses, pharmacists, lab volunteers and other trained healthcare professionals who are directly responsible for dealing with patients of any kind.A break-up of each of these categories shows that 11.6 lakh or 9% are allopathy doctors, 17.5 lakh (14%) are nurses while 9% are pharmacists and nearly 2 lakh people are trained healthcare professionals such as general duty assistants, emergency medical technicians, X Ray and radiology technicians and so on.A state-wise analysis of the distribution of the key warriors — doctors, nurses, pharmacists, lab volunteers — shows that just five states account for most of them, while the remaining professionals are distributed across all other states and union territories, leaving them at a disadvantage.Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka , Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat account for 50% of the 11 lakh doctors, 42% of all nurses and pharmacists, and 55% of lab volunteers — professionals with a masters degree in microbiology or biochemistry (see graphic).“This reflects a wider problem of regional inequality of doctors and health workers in India. We already have an urban-rural and a north-south difference in various aspects. We will need to make special efforts to identify remote and under-served areas (the aspirational districts for example) to ensure adequate preparedness for Covid-19,” Dr Prashanth N Srinivas, health equity researcher, Institute of Public Health, told TOI.Nearly 82 lakh or 66% are ASHA and Anganwadi workers, psycho social care professionals, members of NSS, NCC, Nehru Yuva Kendra Sanghatan, ex-servicemen and Ayush practitioners etc, whose roles, while being key in negotiating the virus, is limited to secondary and tertiary responsibilities at best.Dr Upendra Bhojani , assistant director, IPH, said: “While everybody is focused on hospital care, battling Covid-19 is also about primary care centres and a decentralised healthcare system. While the imbalances in distributions of doctors and other main health professionals has been a long-standing issue in the country, the way to rectify it is to decentralise, Kerala, is a good example.”Among these 82 lakh, ASHA and Anganwadi workers, who are performing a key role of door-to-door surveys and primary care duties make up 35 lakh. “The role of ASHA workers especially has been very crucial. In Karnataka, for example, they are the ones going to homes to conduct surveys and help authorities in gathering crucial community data,” a senior official said.