India closes in on US as coronavirus cases cross 7-million mark, Jakarta set to ease curbs
- India expected to become pandemic’s worst-hit country in coming weeks as
- Health Ministry registered 74,383 infections in past 24 hours with 918 deaths
- Meanwhile, Indonesia’s capital will ease social distancing curbs starting on Monday despite struggling to contain the spread of infection
India’s coronavirus cases surged past 7 million on Sunday, taking it ever closer to overtaking the United States as the world’s most infected country.
Health ministry data showed a rise of almost 75,000 cases on Sunday, taking the total to 7.05 million, second only to the US which has recorded 7.67 million infections.
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As cases top 7 million, India poised to overtake the US with world’s highest coronavirus caseload
Experts say that the true number may be much higher, with testing rates in the vast country of 1.3 billion people – home to some of the planet’s most crowded cities – much lower than in many other countries.
This is borne out by a string of studies measuring antibodies to the virus among the Indian population that have indicated infection rates could be several times higher than officially recorded.
India’s death toll of 108,334 as of Sunday is also lower than in the US and other countries with higher caseloads.
The United States has recorded 214,000 deaths while Brazil, with two million fewer infections than India, has lost nearly 150,000 lives so far.