Posted on 07/02/21
| News Source: i24
Third country in the world to cross 400,000 death mark from COVID-19
India is the third country in the world to cross the 400,000 death mark from COVID-19, according to official figures released on Friday.
The total number of coronavirus-related deaths stands at 400,312, according to the Indian Ministry of Health, behind the United States (605,010) and Brazil (520,095).
The pandemic has killed at least 3,949,567 people around the world since the end of December 2019, according to a report established Thursday by AFP from official sources.
According to many experts, the toll of the epidemic in India would far exceed one million dead, after a galloping outbreak of the epidemic in April and May, which had completely overwhelmed hospitals in the country.
This upsurge in cases has been attributed to the Delta variant, which is much more contagious, and to a relaxation of restriction measures.
As the number of new daily cases has fallen sharply in recent weeks, many measures have been lifted, raising fears of a new wave of contamination in the coming months.
The government's goal is to immunize 1.1 billion adults by the end of the year.
But due to a vaccine shortage, disorganized administration and some reluctance among the population, only 5 percent of residents have so far received two doses.