India, which recently recorded more than 10 million cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has the second-highest number of cases in the world, behind only the U.S. Yet despite the somber milestone, the country has seen a dramatic dip in daily new infections, which are down to less than one-third of their peak in September, when the daily count topped 95,000.
The decrease in cases has brought a measure of confidence in mega cities like New Delhi, which have been ravaged by the coronavirus. Customers are back in markets, there are long lines outside metro stations and traffic is humming on the streets, giving hope to a recession-hit economy whose main driver is domestic consumers.