The overall figure rises by more than 21 million, increased by a record 412,262 new cases, while the death toll now stands at 230,168, according to data from the health ministry.
India has reported more than 400,000 coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, while the number of deaths from the virus amounted to 3,980.
The South Asian nation’s account has surpassed 21 million cases, driven by a record 412,262 new infections. The number of people killed as a result of COVID-19 now stands at 230,168, according to data from the health ministry on Thursday.
Experts believe that the number of infections and deaths from the virus is insufficient.
A massive wave of infections since April has pushed India’s healthcare system to the brink, with people asking for oxygen cylinders and hospital beds on social media and news channels.
The bodies have been piled on cremation grounds and cemeteries with relatives waiting for hours during the last rites.
Authorities are fighting to add more beds, sending oxygen from one corner of the country to another and increasing the manufacture of the few effective drugs against COVID-19.
Current oxygen plan: Court to govern
On Wednesday, the Indian government, which is facing requests for a strict closure to curb the rise in infections, was ordered by the Supreme Court to present a plan to supply oxygen to New Delhi hospitals in a day.
The court decided not to immediately punish officials for failing to end an erratic supply of oxygen to over-stressed hospitals over the past two weeks.
“Ultimately, putting officers in jail or transporting officers out of contempt will not bring oxygen. Please tell us the steps to fix it,” Judge Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud said.
The court delayed a warning of contempt previously issued to the government by the New Delhi High Court to challenge its order to supply adequate oxygen to more than 40 New Delhi hospitals. Government officials convicted could have received six months in prison and a fine.
On Tuesday, the New Delhi High Court, which had summoned two Interior Ministry officials on Wednesday, said those hospitals had reduced the number of beds available and had asked patients to leave. The court hears petitions filed by various hospitals and nursing homes struggling with unreliable oxygen supplies.
“You can put your head in the sand like an ostrich, we can’t. We will not answer no to answer, “Magistrates Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli said on Tuesday.
Raghav Chaddha, a spokesman for the Aam Aadmi party, which governs New Delhi, said hospitals only received 40% of their daily needs of 700 metric tons through the federal government. The local government was organizing additional supplies and setting up new oxygen plants to help with the shortage, he said.
Dileep Kumar, a student, said hospital authorities asked him to move his father to another hospital in Ghaziabad, a city on the outskirts of New Delhi, after the first hospital ran out of oxygen.
“Lock the only option”
Rahul Gandhi, leader of the opposition party in Congress, said this week that “the blockade is now the only option due to the total lack of strategy of the Indian government.”
The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reluctant to impose a national closure for fear of damaging the economy. Modi said last month that he would only do so as a last resort.
But about a dozen states have imposed their own limits.
This week, the most populous state in Uttar Pradesh, with 200 million people, implemented a five-day closure. The second and third most populous states in the country, Maharashtra and Bihar, respectively, are also blocked with sidewalks of varying severity.
Efforts to increase the level of vaccination are hampered by dose shortages. India, a country of about 1.4 billion people, has so far administered 160 million doses.
The world community shakes hands. The United States, Britain, Germany and several other nations are launching drugs, rapid virus and oxygen tests into India, along with the materials needed to increase domestic COVID-19 vaccine production.
