Coronavirus gives no truce in India: new record of daily deaths and cases increased again

India recorded 3,780 coronavirus deaths on Wednesday, the highest number since the start of the pandemic, while daily infections rose again after several days of slight drops amid a dizzying second wave that plummeted the healthcare system.

The latest data from India’s Ministry of Health brought the total number of deaths to 226,188 while, with 382,315 new cases of covid-19 in the past 24 hours, the total number of infections now stands at 20.6 million.

Second most affected country in the world by the pandemic in absolute terms, only behind the United States with 32.5 million cases according to Johns Hopkins University, saw the number of daily infections rise on Wednesday for the first time since it broke the positive barrier of 400,000 last Saturday.

The Asian country is mired in a dizzying second wave of the virus, which has grown steadily since last February and has put its healthcare system to the limit, with oxygen shortages and beds in major cities like New Delhi .

India has administered 1.4 million doses against the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, a small number compared to the nearly three and a half million vaccines it administered weeks ago.

With these data, the country has exceeded 160 million vaccines administered since the start of its campaign, extended last weekend to all citizens over 18 years.

However, and although India views its inoculation program as a salvation from the coronavirus crisis, the percentage of the population fully immunized is approximately 2 percent.

More than 40 countries have started sending aid to India to cooperate in the fight against the pandemic, including ventilators and medical equipment, in addition to oxygen generators, cylinders, concentrators and regulators .

The increase in cases has been attributed in the country to a relaxation of measures against the coronavirus by the population and the organization of mass events, such as large electoral rallies in the context of several regional elections or the religious festival of Kumbh Mela, the largest and one of the oldest religious congregations in the world.

Indian ‘double mutant’ variant B.1.617 and other strains could also be behind the sudden increase in cases in the country, although virologists have so far pointed to the lack of data to support this. theory.

(With information from EFE)

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