India records over 1.6 lakh new cases; total count increases 20 fold since Feb 1
Amid horror stories of dead bodies piling up in hospitals and Covid treatment centres running out of beds and ventilators, India’s Covid-19 count grew by over 1.6 lakh, going past the US and Brazil combined. India now has the second-highest number of cases in the world with the total crossing 1.36 crore, behind the US which has reported 3 crore cases so far.
On Sunday, India’s daily count of 1.68 lakh cases was higher than the combined tally of the USA (47, 874 cases) and Brazil (37,537).
However, on Monday the cases dipped mainly due to lower testing on Sunday. Maharashtra reported a major decline, reporting around 51,751 cases, nearly 11,000 less than the previous day’s tally.
However, the situation in Delhi and neighbouring Uttar Pradesh remained grim, with the national Capital reporting 11,491 cases and UP recording 13,604 cases.
While Gujarat reported 6,021 new cases, 2,854 recoveries and 55 deaths in the last 24 hours, Rajasthan reported 5,771 new cases, 1,291 recoveries and 25 deaths during the same period.
India’s cases are also doubling and tripling at an alarming speed. From 8,579 cases on February 1, it has taken just ten weeks for the country to see a 20-time spike in the daily number of cases, a record of sorts across the world.
Meanwhile, on the second day of countrywide Tika Utsav (vaccination festival), India’s Covid-19 vaccination coverage went past the 10.50 crore mark on Monday. Eight States account for 60.13 per cent of the total doses given so far in the country, according to the Union Health Ministry data. The first day of Tika Utsav on Sunday saw the administration of 30 lakh vaccination doses at 63,800 Covid Vaccination Centres across the country.
As on Monday cumulatively, 10,45,28,565 vaccine doses have been administered through 15,56,361 sessions, as per the provisional report till 7 AM. These include 90,13,289 healthcare workers (HCWs) who have taken the 1st dose and 55,24,344 HCWs who have taken the 2nd dose, 99,96,879 frontline workers (FLWs) (1stdose), 47,95,756 FLWs (2nddose), 4,05,30,321 1st dose beneficiaries and 19,42,705 2nd dose beneficiaries more than 60 years old and 3,20,46,911 (1st dose) and 6,78,360 (2nd dose) beneficiaries aged 45 to 60.