Coronavirus | India closes in on Italy, U.K. and Spain on number of confirmed cases

1,37,158 samples tested on June 3, says ICMR.

Maintenance staff sanitise a train at Vijayawada Railway Station on June 3, 2020.

India on June 3 registered a massive spike of 9,577 new COVID-19 cases and 253 fatalities, according to data from the State Health Departments.

The number of active cases stands at 2,16,735, including 1,06,658 actives ones, while 1,04,000 people have recovered. The death toll rose to 6,077.

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The Indian Council of Medical Research said that 1,37,158 samples were tested on June 3, going up from 1,28,868 on June 2, when India registered 8,917 cases.

India, in terms of its confirmed cases, is closing in on three European countries, whose health systems collapsed under the pandemic. These are Italy with 2,33,836 cases, the U.K. with 2,81,264 cases and Spain with 2,40,326 cases. While cases continue to climb in these countries, they are much fewer than India. Italy, for instance, registered slightly more than 300 cases on Wednesday, the U.K. is adding around 1,800 cases a day on an average, while Spain has been adding less than 600 cases since May 25.

While the death rates in these countries have reduced, these three countries have registered deaths five-six times more than India.

According to the Union Health Ministry, India’s current fatality rate is 2.80%. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Gujarat continue to lead in terms of cases.

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Testing capacity

India’s testing capacity has increased via its 480 government and 208 private laboratories (total 688 laboratories). Cumulatively, 41,03,233 samples have been tested so far for COVID-19, whereas, 1,37,158 samples were tested on Wednesday alone.

 

As part of its healthcare preparation, India has 952 dedicated COVID hospitals with 1,66,332 isolation beds, 21,393 ICU beds and 72,762 oxygen-supported beds are available.

Also, 2,391 dedicated COVID Health Centres with 1,34,945 isolation beds and 11,027 ICU beds and 46,875 oxygen-supported beds have been operationalised.

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The Centre has also provided 125.28 lakh N95 masks and 101.54 lakh personal protective equipment (PPEs) to States/ Union Territories / Central Institutions, according to a release.