India On Track To Surpass U.S. As Country Worst Affected By COVID-19

НОВОРОССИЯ.RU
17 Сен 2020, 19:27

Enlarge this image

A health worker wearing protective gear collects a swab sample during a medical screening for the coronavirus in Mumbai on Wednesday. The number of registered coronavirus cases passed 5 million on Wednesday.

Punit Paranjpe/AFP via Getty Images

hide caption

toggle caption

Punit Paranjpe/AFP via Getty Images

Coronavirus Live Updates
At Least 25 Indian Lawmakers Test Positive For Coronavirus As Parliament Reopens

The Health Ministry said Thursday that 1,132 people had died in the previous 24 hours after testing positive for the coronavirus. According to government figures, 83,198 people have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began. But a majority of India’s deaths are not medically certified, so the real tally may be higher. India ranks third, behind the U.S. and Brazil, in total confirmed COVID-19 deaths.

India has ramped up its testing to more than 1 million samples per day. But that’s still low, per capita, for a country of nearly 1.4 billion people, and scientists believe the extent of India’s outbreak may still be underestimated.

Serological studies have shown as many as 1 in 4 Indians already have coronavirus antibodies, suggesting that real rates of exposure to the virus may be much higher than confirmed cases indicate.

Coronavirus Live Updates
Indian Economy Shrinks By 24% As The Country Sees Its Highest Coronavirus Numbers

Back in March, with cases of COVID-19 still low in India, the government imposed the world’s biggest coronavirus lockdown. The restrictions left hundreds of millions of impoverished laborers stranded in urban centers and industrial zones, with little to eat. Many starved to death as they tried to walk back to their home villages, sometimes hundreds of miles away. Their exodus helped spread the virus all over the country.

In late May, the Indian government began easing lockdown restrictions to try to alleviate economic damage. Most offices, restaurants and malls have reopened nationwide. Public transit is running again in many cities, but schools remain shut.

India’s parliament also reopened Monday for the first time in nearly six months. But at least 25 lawmakers were barred from the chamber after testing positive for the coronavirus.

Despite the reopenings, India’s economy shrank by nearly 24% last quarter.

On Wednesday, an Indian pharmaceutical company and Russia’s sovereign wealth fund announced a partnership to distribute 100 million doses of an experimental Russian vaccine against COVID-19. The company, Hyderabad-based Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, said it was conducting phase three trials of the vaccine in India, assessing safety and effectiveness in the general population, to meet the Indian government’s regulatory requirements.

The vaccine had already been approved last month in Russia, drawing international skepticism because Russia had not completed phase three trials.