India has registered a record new 78,761 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the worst single-day spike in the world, as the …
India has registered a record new 78,761 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, the worst single-day spike in the world, as the government continues to further ease pandemic restrictions nationwide. Sunday’s surge has raised the country’s total virus tally to over 3.5 million and comes at a time when India is reopening its subway networks and allowing sports and religious events in a limited manner from next month as part of efforts to revive the economy. The crowded subway, a lifeline for millions of people in capital New Delhi, will be reopened in a phased manner from Sept.7. Schools and colleges will, however, remain closed until the end of September. The South Asian country has the third-highest caseload after the United States and Brazil, and its fatalities are the fourth-highest. Even as eight Indian states remain among the worst-hit regions and contribute nearly 73% of the total infections, the virus is now spreading fast in the vast hinterlands, with experts warning that the month of September could be the most challenging. HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE VIRUS OUTBREAK — Health experts decry Trump’s shunning of virus rules — Nurses on New York’s front lines call for minimum staffing ratios — Far-right extremists try to enter German parliament — Prison inmates in Mexico have suffered from coronavirus infections at a higher rate than the country as a whole, and pandemic lockdowns have reduced their already limited contact with the outside world. — Shiite Muslims are observing the solemn holy day of Ashoura that they typically mark with large, mournful gatherings, in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic. — Tour de France riders sped past a hospital in Nice where health workers are traumatized by their battle against the coronavirus. HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING: The 17th consecutive day of triple-digit increases brought the national caseload to 19,699, including 323 deaths. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 209 of the new cases came from the capital of Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi province as well as Incheon, a region that had been at the center of a viral resurgence this month. Health authorities have ordered churches and nightspots to close and shifted more schools back to remote learning nationwide as infections spiked in recent weeks. For eight days starting Sunday, restaurants in the Seoul metropolitan area will be allowed to provide only deliveries and takeouts after 9 p.m. Franchised coffee shops like Starbucks will sell only takeout drinks and food. Navajo Nation health officials say the confirmation of a new death brings the number of fatalities from coronavirus to 500. That brings the total number of people infected to 9,780. But that includes 165 cases that occurred between early April and mid-August and were recently identified as COVID-19 related. Navajo officials said 94,099 people have been tested for the coronavirus and 7,032 have recovered. The Navajo Nation lifted its stay-at-home order on Aug.
