India marked a deadly milestone in the COVD-19 epidemic on Thursday, with 314,835 new daily cases, the highest one-day total anywhere because of its second wave and the so-called increased healthcare coping skills elsewhere.
According to the Ministry of Health, the total number of cases in India is now 15.93 million, the second highest in the world. Where deaths roses 2,104 to reach a total of 184,657.
Hospitals across northern and western India, including the capital New Delhi, have issued notices stating that there is only a few hours of medical oxygen to keep COVID-19 patients alive.
According to the Delhi government’s online database, more than two-thirds of hospitals did not have empty beds and doctors advised patients to stay at home.
Dr. Kirit Gadhvi President of the Medical Association in the western city of Ahmedabad, told Reuters that “The situation in India is extremely critical,”
“Patients are struggling to get beds in Covid-19 hospital. There is a severe shortage of oxygen in particular.”
An assistant professor in the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Medical University of South Carolina in the United States, Krutika Kuppalli said on her Twitter account that the crisis had led to the collapse of the healthcare system.
The mighty second wave of coronavirus infection blamed for the “double mutant” variant and “super-spreader” mass gathering in the world’s second-most populous country has extended its long-dormant healthcare system to a breaking point.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been criticized for speaking at packet-based political rallies for local elections and for allowing Hindu festivals to take the lead where millions of people gathered.
In a speech to the nation on Tuesday night, Modi said “all efforts are being made” to increase the oxygen supply to the treatment.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday ordered the government to detach oxygen from industry to hospitals to save lives.
In response to an application from a New Delhi hospital seeking intervention the judges said, “We can’t let people die for the shortage of oxygen, you have to beg, borrow and steal but you have to provide.”
All the states of India have imposed bans on the six-day lockdown with Delhi, all unnecessary shops in the states of Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh have been closed and arrangements have been made to close on weekends.
India has launched a vaccination campaign but only a small part of the population has been vaccinated.
Expert says that the authorities have announced that the vaccine will be available for people over the age of 18 from May 1, but there are not enough shots in India for the 100 million eligible people.
