The Population Council Institute’s COVID-19 study team is implementing rapid phone-based surveys to collect information on knowledge, attitudes and practices, as well as needs, among 2041 young people (ages 18–25 years) and/or an adult household member, sampled from an existing prospective cohort study with a total sample size of 20,574 in Bihar (n=10,433) and Uttar Pradesh (n=10,141). COVID-19 baseline was conducted from April 3–12; subsequent iterations of the survey are planned to be conducted on a monthly basis. Findings on awareness of COVID-19 symptoms, perceived risk, awareness of and ability to carry out preventive behaviors, misconceptions, fears, and the economic and food security impacts, mental health, access to services – all aim to inform the development of stakeholders’ interventions and strategies.
