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- India’s COVID-19 crisis continues to worsen, with another 382,315 infections reported on Wednesday
- The country is only the second to pass the milestone of 20 million infections, and recorded another 3780 deaths over the last 24 hours
- The government claims there are sufficient oxygen supplies but that distribution has been hampered by transport problems
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been reluctant to impose a nationwide shutdown for fear of the economic fallout
- India currently has an estimated 3.45 million active cases, but health experts suggest the number of dead and infected people could be significantly higher
India’s COVID-19 crisis continues to worsen, with another 382,315 infections reported on Wednesday — the most cases to be counted in one day anywhere in the world.
The country is only the second — after the United States — to pass the milestone of 20 million infections, and recorded another 3780 deaths over the last 24 hours, according to health ministry data.
The surge of the highly infectious Indian variant has seen hospitals run out of beds and oxygen, leaving many people to die in ambulances and car parks as they wait for treatment.
Two “oxygen express” trains reached the capital Delhi on Wednesday carrying desperately needed liquid oxygen, India’s Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal said on Twitter. So far, more than 25 trains have delivered oxygen to various parts of the country.
The government — which has come under fire for its handling of the virus — claims there are sufficient oxygen supplies, but that distribution has been hampered by transport problems.
India’s soaring case numbers have also coincided with a severe drop in vaccinations. At least three states have reported shortages due to major supply issues, forcing some inoculation centres to shut down.
The country’s opposition has called for a nationwide lockdown, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is reluctant to impose a shutdown for fear of the economic fallout.
“We need a government. Desperately. And we don’t have one. We are running out of air. We are dying[…]” wrote author Arundhati Roy in an opinion piece published on Tuesday, which called for Modi to stand down.
“This is a crisis of your making. You cannot solve it. You can only make it worse […] So please go. It is the most responsible thing for you to do. You have forfeited the moral right to be our prime minister.”
India currently has an estimated 3.45 million active cases, but health experts suggest the number of dead and infected people could be between five and 10 times higher than official figures.
