According to government statistics, India has reported 26,291 new coronavirus cases, the largest single-day increase this year, bringing the cumulative caseload to 11,385,339 cases.
The number of deaths related to COVID-19 has risen to 158,725 with 118 more deaths recorded on Monday, according to a federal health ministry statement.
After the United States and Brazil, India, which has the highest virus caseload, saw a downward trend in infections at the end of 2020, but the figures have been increasing again in recent weeks.
After the epidemic last year, the western state of Maharashtra has become a virus hotspot, with 16,620 new infections.
According to data on the Johns Hopkins University website, the number of infections increased for the first time in 85 days on Monday, when there were as many as 26,624 new infections reported.
There are fears of a second pandemic in India, with medical experts speculating that emerging strains of the virus, as well as a lack of attention to safety standards, could be to blame for the increase in cases.
In addition to Maharashtra, which placed partial lockdowns and restrictions to control diseases, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu all recorded an increase in cases.
After initiating the program in mid-January by inoculating front-line employees and healthcare professionals, India extended its COVID-19 vaccination drive on March 1 to include citizens over 60 years old.
Nearly 30 million doses have been administered so far, but analysts believe the rate of vaccines needs to pick up to achieve the government’s goal of inoculating 300 million citizens by early August.
