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NEW DELHI: India’s coronavirus cases topped nine million on Friday, as the world’s second-worst-hit country saw hospitals in the capital New Delhi under pressure and packed cemeteries.
India has recorded more than 132,000 deaths, according to the latest official figures, which are considered to underestimate the true magnitude of the pandemic.
The total number of infections in India is second only to the count in the US, which has recorded 11.6 million cases and more than 250,000 deaths.
India, the second most populous nation in the world, has seen a drop in daily cases over the past month, but still sees around 45,000 new infections on average every day.
New Delhi, facing the double scourge of winter pollution and coronavirus, has seen infections surpass half a million with a record rise in daily cases.
On Thursday, the megacity government quadrupled fines for not wearing a mask in an effort to control the outbreak.
In one of Delhi’s largest cemeteries, burial space is rapidly running out, grave digger Mohammed Shamim told AFP.
“Initially when the virus broke out, I thought it would bury 100-200 people and it would. But the current situation is beyond my wildest thoughts, ”Shamim said.
“I only have room for about 50-60 burials. And that? I have no idea.”
Covid fatigue
India imposed a strict lockdown in March, but restrictions have been gradually eased as the government seeks to restart the economy after millions of jobs lost.
Experts say this has helped spread the disease, as has a general reluctance to wear masks and maintain physical detachment.
The western city of Ahmedabad, home to six million people, announced an indefinite night curfew on Thursday night after a spike in cases.
“The increase in the number of cases is a concern, mainly because it is driven by people not following the basic protocol of behavior appropriate to the crown,” said Anand Krishnan, professor of community medicine at the Institute of Medical Sciences of India. Delhi.
Hemant Shewade, a Bangalore-based community medicine expert, said that cases outside of major towns and cities were likely not accounted for in official figures.
“I think it is slowly and quietly spreading in rural areas,” Shewade told AFP.
In Delhi, the specter of the virus that is wreaking havoc has returned to haunt its 20 million residents as families scramble to fix hospital beds.
More than 90% of intensive care beds with fans were occupied Thursday, a government mobile app showed.
“My father’s oxygen saturation level suddenly dropped to 35% and we rushed to the nearby hospital, but there were no beds available,” Rajeev Nigam, a Delhi resident, told AFP.
“We ran all night from hospital to hospital, but it was the same story everywhere,” he said, blaming the Delhi government for “not being prepared” and “insensitive” in its approach.
Distressed families were making fervent pleas on social media, asking Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for help in securing the beds.
Under pressure to control the new wave, Kejriwal announced on Thursday the addition of 1,400 intensive care beds.
Jeevendra Srivastava, an advertising professional, said Delhi was paying the price for overcrowding during the current holiday season.
“It’s shocking how some people still don’t take this deadly virus seriously,” said Srivastava, 47.
“People still go to crowded places without masks. It is because of this irresponsible behavior that now almost every second house has a case of the virus ”.
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