India’s coronavirus count rose to 59,03,932 on Saturday, as the country reported 85,362 new cases in the last 24 hours. India’s toll rose by 1,089 to 93,379. As many as 48.49 lakh people have recovered from the infection so far. The Indian Council of Medical Research said 13,41,535 samples were tested on Friday.
The World Health Organization on Friday warned that the global toll from the coronavirus could hit two million before an effective vaccine against the virus is widely used. Dr Mike Ryan, the WHO’s emergencies head, said the figure could be higher without concerted international action.
Medical journal The Lancet on Friday called on Indian leaders to respect scientific evidence and not provide false optimism to people amid the raging coronavirus crisis. The journal said that a “too positive spin” on the situation would not only cloud the reality but also adversely affect public health initiatives.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the coronavirus situation in the state was grave. “There is a steep hike in the number of positive cases in many districts,” he had said. “We are moving to a serious situation.” The state now has more than 1.54 lakh confirmed cases.
Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 3.24 crore people and killed 9,87,679, according to Johns Hopkins University. The number of worldwide recoveries is more than 2.23 crore.
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