India s Covid record hits grim new high as 412,000 new cases swamp hospitals
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06/05/2021 - 16:47 The devastating coronavirus wave in India has overwhelmed even its crematoriums and graveyards. Manjunath Kiran AFP Text by: Pratap Chakravarty 5 min India has marked another day of record Covid highs, with nearly 4,000 deaths and 412,000 new infections, which pushed up the total number of cases to 21 million. The government warned a third surge of the pandemic was “inevitable”, as the country faces a shortage in oxygen and critical care. Advertising Read more
Twelve of India’s 28 states accounted for more than 100,000 active cases each and the rate of infection and mortality was on the rise in five of them, the health ministry said.
The Supreme Court Thursday said the country needs to be prepared for the third wave of COVID-19 which experts say could be more harmful, especially for children, and emphasised upon the need to create buffer stock of oxygen. It asked the Centre not to reduce oxygen supply to Delhi from 700MT till further orders and ensure that rationalisation exercise is completed while taking into account the pan-India perspective. The top court said that people in Delhi are dying despite efforts being made to treat COVID-19 patients and there is also no denying that many have lost their lives due to shortage of oxygen supply.