Germany mourns its 80,000 Covid dead; Coronavirus crisis deepens across India
World
April 19, 2021
New Delhi: More government hospital beds will be freed for Covid-19 patients, India’s health ministry said Sunday, as the vast nation grappled with a worsening virus crisis and states appealed for additional supplies of oxygen and treatment drugs.
The country of 1.3 billion people added a record-high of 261,500 new cases on Sunday, with one-in-six people who underwent tests returning positive coronavirus results, the ministry said.
India is the world’s second most-infected nation with almost 14.8 million cases. Hospitals usually reserved for employees of ministries or public sector companies should convert some of their wards into Covid-19 facilities equipped with ICU and oxygen-supported beds, ventilators, laboratories and healthcare staff, the government said.