Covid-19 in India: 4,000 deaths and 412,000 infections in 24 hours

India has recorded a record of nearly 4,000 deaths from Covid-19 and 412,000 new infections in 24 hours, according to official data released on Thursday. Figures from the Ministry of Health show 3,980 deaths and 412,262 cases daily, bringing to 230,168 deaths and 21.1 million infections recorded in total in India since the start of the pandemic.

Figures that some experts believe are largely undervalued. This new record follows several days of decline in the number of cases which had raised hopes that this catastrophic upsurge could subside. After reaching a peak of 402,000 daily contaminations last Friday, the following days have witnessed a slight decline to 357,000, before increasing again on Tuesday.

The sharp increase in the number of cases since the end of March has overwhelmed hospitals, with fatal shortages of beds, medicine and oxygen. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government refuses to order generalized containment, but several regions, including the capital New Delhi, the states of Bihar and Maharashtra, have confined themselves.

“An inevitable third episode”

According to specialists, the worst is yet to come with an epidemic peak which may not be reached for several weeks. K. Vijay Raghavan, principal scientific adviser to the Indian government, warned Wednesday evening that a “third episode (was) inevitable given the high levels” of current contaminations. “But we don’t know exactly when this third episode will occur. We have to prepare for new waves, ”he said at a press conference.

The government is facing more and more criticism in view of the dramatic situation facing the health sector with patients in respiratory distress dying at the doors of saturated hospitals, short of oxygen and essential medical supplies. Shipments of emergency medical aid, including oxygen generators and respirators, have poured in over the past ten days, especially from the United States, Great Britain and all over Europe.


You may also like