Based on data collated by The Hindu from Health Departments of various Indian States, India has now overtaken United Kingdom to become the country with the fourth highest incidence of COVID-19. According to the country-wise tally maintained by John Hopkins University , the total cases in the United Kingdom stood at 2,92,854.
Here is a list of State Helpline numbers . You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here .
Here are the latest updates:
India records largest single-day spike of 11,000 cases
India registered it's highest single-day spike, recording 11,000 COVID-19 cases on the day, taking the total to 2,97,928.
392 deaths were recorded on the day, taking the overall toll to 8,497. Active cases stand at 1,42,715, with 1,46,716 patients having recovered.
Earlier in the evening, India crossed the U.K.'s tally to become the country with the fourth highest incidence of COVID-19.
SSB jawan succumbs to COVID-19; 15 deaths in CAPFs
A 36-year-old Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) official succumbed to coronavirus, taking the total number of fatalities in the force due to the pandemic to two, a senior official said on Thursday. This is the 15th COVID-19 death among the paramilitary force or the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).
The head constable rank official was under treatment for the last few months with a serious head injury at a hospital in New Delhi. He passed away on Wednesday due to coronavirus infection, official said. The official also suffered a heart attack, he said. He was posted at the headquarters of the force in Delhi, officials said. The SSB has reported 106 COVID-19 cases till now, out of which 55 personnel, have recovered. Earlier, a 55-year-old head constable of the force had succumbed to the pandemic.
With the latest death, there have been 15 casualties among CAPFs like the Central Industrial Security Force (5), Central Reserve Police Force (4), Border Security Force (3) and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (1). The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) also reported 36 new cases on Thursday that include 28 personnel from its unit based in Kashmir. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) also reported a fresh case of coronavirus infection. It has 17 active cases, while 194 personnel have recovered from the disease.
As per data accessed by PTI, the five CAPFs and two other central forces - the National Security Guard and the National Disaster Response Force- have reported over 1,880 coronavirus cases. While over 1,220 troops have been cured or recovered, more than 645 are under treatment, the data said.
Madhya Pradesh on Thursday recorded 192 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to 10,241. The number of active cases stands at 2,768. Two patients died in Indore owing to the illness, while Burhanpur and Chhindwara reported one death each on the day. The State-wide death toll climbed to 431. As for recoveries, 150 patients were discharged from hospitals on the day. So far, 7,042 persons have been cured of the illness, says the State Directorate of Health Services.
- Sidharth Yadav
Punjab CM orders stricter lockdown on weekends, public holidays
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday ordered stricter lockdown on weekends and public holidays, even as the State mulls stringent curbs, including mandatory testing certification, for those coming from Delhi. The decision to tighten the curbs on weekends and holidays has been taken amid apprehensions of COVID-19 reaching the community spread stage in Punjab and projections indicating that the peak in the State was still two months away.
Industrial activities, however, will be allowed to function normally on all days, the CM said. The COVID-19 tally in Punjab on Thursday reached 2,887 with 82 more people testing positive. More than 500 people have tested positive for the virus in the State in the last 10 days.
All citizens, except medical staff and essential service providers, would be required to download e-passes from the COVA (Corona Virus Alert) app, the CM directed at a video-conference meeting held to review the pandemic situation and the State’s preparedness to handle further spread.
The COVA Punjab App has been developed by the State government to provide people with preventive information and other government advisories. Mr. Singh asked Director General of Police Dinkar Gupta to ensure strict implementation of these directives to prevent gathering of large crowds, as per a government statement.
Based on data collated by The Hindu from Health Departments of various Indian States, the total confirmed COVID-19 cases stood at 2,97,348. India has now overtaken United Kingdom to become the country with the fourth highest incidence of COVID-19. According to the country-wise tally maintained by John Hopkins University , the total cases in the United Kingdom stood at 2,92,854.
Delhi heading towards being ‘corona capital’ of India: High Court on spike in COVID-19 cases
The national capital is fast heading towards becoming the “corona capital” of the country, observed the Delhi High Court while expressing concern over the spike in COVID-19 cases and directed that all private hospitals equipped with labs to test for coronavirus and having ICMR sanction be permitted to conduct the test.
A Bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad observed that “corona capital” was “an epithet the city can well do without” and said it was need of the hour that all private hospitals equipped with labs to test for COVID-19 be permitted to do so without losing any more time.
According to latest official figures, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Delhi is over 32,000 including 984 deaths. The number of active coronavirus patients in the city is over 19,000.
Maharashtra recorded a new single-day high in cases as well as fatalities on Thursday, reporting 3,607 new COVID-19 cases and 152 deaths as its total case tally soared to 97,648 while its total death toll rose to 3,590. However, only 47,968 cases of Maharashtra's total case tally are active ones. As many as 1,561 patients were discharged today, taking the total number of discharged till date to 46,078.
With 1,418 new cases reported today, Mumbai's total case tally has now reached 54,085 while its death toll has risen to 1,954. As many as 97 of the new deaths were reported from Mumbai city, nine from the Mira Bhayandar civic body area, seven from Kalyan Dombivali, and eight from Pune among other parts of the State.
- Shoumojit Banerjee
Manipur CM awards woman autorickshaw driver for ferrying a recovered COVID-19 patient
Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Thursday awarded a woman autorickshaw driver for ferrying a person who had recovered from COVID-19 in a hospital in Imphal to Kamjong district, over 100km away.
The ambulance service of the State-run Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal, where the woman patient was being treated, had refused to take her home as she hailed from another district, a release by the Department of Information and Public Relations said.
Laibi Oinam volunteered to drop the recovered patient, who had returned from Kolkata, and drove for eight long hours during the intervening night of May 31 and June 1 in Imphal to reach the destination in a village in the far flung hill district.
The Chief Minister handed over a cash award of ₹1,10,000 to Ms. Oinam, the release said. The award was sponsored by some entrepreneurs of the State and by Manipuri expatriates as an appreciation of Ms. Oinam’s humane act and service.
Ms. Oinam, who is a mother of two sons, is the sole breadwinner of her family.
Gujarat’s COVID-19 spike continues with 38 deaths and 513 infections, bringing its numbers to 1,385 fatalities and 22,067 cases; On Thursday, 366 patients were discharged, bringing the total number of those discharged to 15,109. The State has 5,573 active cases out of which 61 are on ventilator support.
- Mahesh Langa
Supreme Court Bar Association urges Delhi CM to set up COVID-19 testing centre on premises
The Supreme Court Bar Association urged Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday to set up a facility for testing of COVID-19 on the apex court premises in view of continuous rise in the number of cases.
In a letter to Mr. Kejriwal, the Association said that the asymptomatic nature of coronavirus makes everyone suspect and, therefore, it is vital to carry out test on all.
It added that accessing the laboratory for testing had its own hazards and while many of them decline to entertain patients, others do not have the required kits.
It added that the step was required keeping in mind that the Supreme Court premises was visited by a large range of people including litigants who come to Delhi for their cases.
Kerala reports 83 fresh coronavirus cases; one death and 62 recover
Five health workers are among the 83 people who tested positive for coronavirus in Kerala while one more death was reported on Thursday, taking the State’s infection count to 2,224 and the toll to 18. A total of 62 people recovered from the disease.
Of the fresh cases, as many as 27 had returned from abroad and 37, including 20 from Maharashtra and seven from Delhi, were among those who had come from other States, Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters. Fourteen people were infected through contact, he said.
Thrissur reported the highest number of positive cases at 25, followed by Palakkad 13, Malappuram and Kasaragod 10 each, Kollam eight, Kannur seven, Pathnamthitta five, Ernakulam and Kottayam two cases each and Kozhikode one. There are 133 hotspots in the State with the addition of two places in Palakkad. Thirty five places have been removed from the list.
Steps to mitigate intensity of COVID-19 being taken: Minister
Admitting to the intensity of coronavirus in Chennai, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Vijayabhaskar on Thursday said the State government and the Health Department are discussing ways and means to reduce the impact. “It is really a tough task to control the disease in Chennai as was stated by doctors and researchers.
The doctors across the state have been working with commitment and dedication, and they should be lauded for it,” he said. The Minister said 80% of the infected were asymtomatic and 20% suffering from body ache and fever, which required oxygen, and the need for oxygen was increasing. He ruled out the possibility of shifting patients in Chennai to other districts.
Coronavirus count: 1,875 persons test positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, taking the total to 38,716; 1,372 discharged today and the total discharged is 20,705; 23 deaths reported, taking the total toll at 349.
- Serena Josephine
COVID-19 cases in Nagpur rise to 919; death toll at 15
The number of coronavirus cases in Nagpur reached 919 on Thursday after 74 more persons were found infected, officials said. However, the death toll in the district has remained unchanged at 15 in the last few days, the district information office said in a statement.
A total of 529 patients have recovered from the infection in the district so far, while the number of active cases is 374, it said.
Jama Masjid closed till June 30 due to ‘critical’ COVID-19 situation in Delhi: Shahi Imam
The historic Jama Masjid will be closed for devotees with immediate effect till June 30 in view of “critical” conditions in the city due to a surge in COVID-19 cases, the mosque’s Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari said on Thursday. Mr. Bukhari said he took the decision after consulting public and Islamic scholars.
The development comes after the Shahi Imam’s secretary Amanullah died due to the novel coronavirus at the Safdarjung Hospital on Tuesday night. After taking public opinion and consulting scholars, it has been decided that from ‘maghrib’ (sunset) on Thursday till June 30, no congregational prayers will be performed in the Jama Masjid, Mr. Bukhari said.
“A select few people shall perform the daily five times namaz while the general worshippers will perform the prayers at their homes,” he added.
The mosque had opened on June 8 after a gap of over two months with the government allowing further relaxations as part of “Unlock-1”.
Thai temple bars foreigners entry over COVID-19 fears
One of Thailand’s major tourist attractions is barring entry to foreigners, professing fear that they could spread the coronavirus. Signs seen on Thursday morning at the main gate of Wat Pho, the Buddhist temple adjacent to the Grand Palace in Bangkok, said in English: Open for Thai only, ONLY THAI PEOPLE and NOW NOT OPEN FOR FOREIGNERS.
One of Wat Pho’s administrative staff explained by phone that the temple committee decided to exclude foreigners because of concerns about COVID-19. The outbreak is still rampant in many countries, so we have to stay vigilant as advised by the government, said Wit Artchinda. However, there is no known government order to ban foreigners from the temple.
Thai visitors are allowed entry to the temple, more formally known as Wat Phra Chetuphon, which only reopened last week after being closed for two months during Thailand’s coronavirus lockdown.
Thailand’s toll of COVID-19 cases has been relatively light, and most recent cases have been Thais who have returned from abroad on special evacuation flights. No new cases were reported Thursday, keeping the total number of cases at 3,125, with 58 deaths.
Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri district Collector Anita Ramachandran goes into self-quarantine at her official residence in Bhongir, after a senior official of the Zilla Parishad and his wife tested positive today. Ms. Ramachandran sat alongside the official on June 5 and addressed a video conference, officials confirmed to The Hindu .
- Prashant Reddy
Biggest single day spike in Uttar Pradesh: 24 deaths, 478 new cases
Uttar Pradesh on Thursday reported 24 more coronavirus deaths and 478 new cases, the biggest single-day spike in both the numbers. The death toll in the State now is 345, after three consecutive days of record highs, with the coronavirus tally reaching 12,088.
Principal Secretary, Health, Amit Mohan Prasad said 7,292 of the total infected have recovered. The State has 4,451 active COVID-19 cases.
He said 15,079 tests were conducted in the State on Wednesday, which is so far the highest in Uttar Pradesh.
Nearly 70% beds vacant in COVID-19 hospitals run by Delhi government
There have been complaints of non-availability of beds or denial of treatment to COVID-19 patients in the national capital despite nearly 70% of beds in five designated hospitals run by the Delhi government lying vacant.
As per the latest information shared on ‘Delhi Corona’ app on Thursday afternoon, more than 3,000 beds are lying vacant in these five dedicated COVID-19 hospitals that have a total capacity of 4,344 beds. However, almost all beds at several big private hospitals are shown to be occupied.
According to the latest data available on ‘Delhi Corona’ app on Thursday afternoon, a total of 9,444 beds are available in private facilities and hospitals run by the Central and Delhi governments. Out of these, 4,371 are vacant.
The app shows that beds are available at Delhi government-run hospitals dedicated for COVID-19 treatment such as LNJP Hospital (1,219), GTB Hospital (1,314), Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital or RGSSH (242). However, almost all beds at several big private hospitals are shown to be occupied.
Delhi recorded 1,501 fresh coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the COVID-19 tally in the city to over 32,000, and the death toll due to the disease mounted to 984, authorities said.
Number of recovered COVID-19 cases rise to 18 in Meghalaya
Five COVID-19 infected persons in Meghalaya have recovered, increasing the number of those who recovered to 18, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said on Thursday.
“5 individuals have recovered after testing negative twice. Total active cases: 25; recovered: 18,” Mr. Sangma tweeted.
The State has reported total 44 cases so far out of which one person affected by the contagion has died.
State Health Minister A.L. Hek during the day visited Nongmynsong locality in the outskirts of the city where a couple, who had returned from Delhi in May, have tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week.
'No community transmission yet'
WHO has not given a definition for the term "community transmisssion". India is such a large country and the prevalence is so low that we can say that India is definitely not into community transmission, says V.K. Paul.
We have ramped up testing, we are now conducting 1.51 lakh tests on an average per day, have a capacity of conducting up to 2 lakh tests per day. 50 lakh tests completed a couple of days back, he says.
We will be doing more sero-surveys, States will be doing more. We will communicate the results to the States, says DG-ICMR.
'Virus impacted less than 1% of the population'
Efforts to limit the scale of spread of the disease will have to be continued by strong implementation of containment strategies by the States. The States cannot lower their guard and need to keep on implementing effective surveillance and containment strategies, says ICMR spokesperson.
Niti Aayog (Member) and Empowered Group Chairman V.K. Paul agrees with him. "This is probably the biggest sero-survey in the world in the context of Covid-19 spread. The results show the situation that was around April 30, at that stage, we can conclude that the virus impacted less than 1% of the population. We contained the spread to this level. It is a major achievement," he says.
Another government responsibility is to strengthen the containment efforts, says Mr. Paul.
Serological survey
ICMR spokesperson shares the details of serological survey conducted by them to monitor the trend the infection transmission.
In serological survey, blood samples are collected from general population and tested for IgG antibodies. If a person is IgG positive, it means they were infected with the virus in the past.
ICMR conducted first serosurvey in May in collaboration with State Health departments, NCDC and WHO-India.
The districts were divided in four groups based on number of reported cases: zero cases, low incidence, medium incidence and high incidence. "We studied about 83 districts in the country," he says.
"We found that 0.73% of the population in these showed prevalence of past exposure to the virus. This means lockdown and containment measures have been successful in keeping it low and preventing rapid spread," he says.
However, this means that a large proportion of the population is still susceptible, the risk is higher in urban (1.09); urban slums (1.89) than rural areas.
The good news that the infection fatality rate is very low: 0.08%.
Non-pharma interventions such as physical distancing, use of face mask/cover, hand hygiene, cough etiquette must be followed strictly since the susceptibility is high, he adds.
'India's cases per lakh among lowest'
India's recovery rate stands at 49.21% as on Thursday, says Health Ministry spokesperson at the COVID-19 briefing.
For the first time, the number of recovered patients has exceeded the number of active patients, he adds.
Cases per lakh population is the lowest in the world as far as India is concerned. Similarly, the number of deaths per lakh population is also amongst the lowest in the world, says ICMR spokesperson
Mizoram: From 1 to 102 in 11 days
With the detection of nine COVID-19 positive cases in Mizoram, the number of active cases has crossed the 100-mark in the northeastern state.
With this, the COVID-19 positive tally in the state has climbed from 1 to 102 in just 11 days.
Of the 11 districts in the state, Hnahthial is the only COVID-19-free district.
Newly built Burns and Plastic Surgery block at AIIMS to be used as COVID-19 facility
A newly constructed building, which was set to operate as the Burns and Plastic Surgery Block at the AIIMS here, will now be used temporarily as a dedicated facility for treating COVID-19 patients.
The decision by the AIIMS authorities comes after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said that Delhi will need 1.5 lakh beds in healthcare facilities by July 31 once people start coming to the city for treatment from other states.
Officials said the 100 bed-facility, which is located next to the AIIMS Trauma Centre, is being readied for the care of coronavirus infected patients and is likely to be functional by the weekend.
Amitabh Bachchan arranges special flight to carry 180 migrants from Mumbai to Lucknow
A special flight arranged by actor Amitabh Bachchan to ferry 180 migrants from Mumbai landed at the airport in Lucknow.
On arrival, the migrants hailing from Unnao, Gonda, Lucknow and other districts of the state thanked the Bollywood star for helping them reach home.
There were six flights scheduled to take off from Mumbai and on Wednesday four flights with about 700 people took off for Allahabad, Gorakhpur and Varanasi. The remaining two flights left for Lucknow and Allahabad on Thursday, sources close to the actor said.
54 disaster response personnel among 136 new cases in Odisha
As many as 136 more people, including 54 disaster response personnel who were engaged in cyclone Amphan relief work in West Bengal, tested positive for COVID-19, raising the total tally in Odisha to 3,386.
Earlier in June, 49 NDRF personnel and 12 Odisha Fire Service officials had tested positive for COVID-19.
There is nothing to hide with regard to COVID-19 deaths: TN CM
Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami denied allegations of discrepancies in COVID-19 death reports and said that there was nothing to hide with regard to the deaths.
"Deaths reported in government hospitals and data of deaths due to COVID-19 in private hospitals is collected and reported. The government has got nothing to benefit by hiding these deaths. Every day, through the Health Department, details of the number of persons tested, number of active cases and number of patients discharged are being announced transparently," he said.
Amid work to reconcile its COVID-19 death data with the Health Department’s figures, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has started collecting data on the number of COVID-19 deaths from burial grounds in the city.
The move comes a day after the Directorate of Public Health (DPH) and Preventive Medicine constituted a committee to reconcile COVID-19 death reports of the GCC. Officials noticed that several COVID-19 deaths were not notified to the Health Department. The committee, comprising eight members, is chaired by P. Vadivelan, director of public health and preventive medicine (officer on special duty).
COVID-19 hinders traditional Parsi disposal of the dead
On June 1, a 55-year-old Parsi man from Grant Road succumbed to COVID-19. His body was carefully wrapped in a sealed bag and taken to the electric crematorium in Chandanwadi, in compliance with the infection control protocol in place.
This, however, denied him the traditional funeral of the Parsi community, wherein the dead are consigned to the Towers of Silence or dakhma s, exposed to scavenger birds and the sun. For the religious Parsis, the outbreak has posed a serious question regarding disposing of their dead, with the government guidelines only mentioning cremations and burials for deceased who have the infection.
Two senior priests have now urged the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) to discuss with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) about the possibility of ensuring rightful final rites for community members.
Three tested positive in your area? You could be in a cluster
The Tamil Nadu government is contemplating labelling an entire ward in an urban area a ‘COVID-19 cluster’, and initiating containment efforts, even if only three positive cases are reported from there.
Earlier, a ward was declared a ‘cluster’ if there were five or more cases.
The government’s proposal is the result of the non-effectiveness of the current demarcation of COVID-19 containment zones and the consequent efforts taken up in those places.
Power, privilege at play for COVID-19 testing
Power and privilege seem to be at play in the Telangana Health department when it comes to testing of primary contacts of COVID-19 patients, as evident from mass testing of GHMC employees during the last two days.
While Health officials are refusing to test all the primary contacts as a rule, and prioritising only the symptomatic ones, no such restraint has been exercised in case of GHMC employees, where one positive case was declared on Monday.
Assam policemen cremate victim, go into quarantine
The Superintendent of Police of Karbi Anglong district has ensured honourable cremation for a man who died of coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) in Assam.
The man from Sumpara village in Karbi Anglong district was the fifth victim of COVID-19 from Assam. His death was announced on June 9, two days after he succumbed to the virus. The delay was because his body lay in the morgue of a government hospital in the district headquarters of Diphu, 271km east of Guwahati. The watchman stayed away after locking the morgue’s door, as did heath workers out of panic over contagion.
Similar incidents were reported in other parts of the country, including Chennai and Mumbai.
28 CRPF personnel posted in Kashmir test COVID positive
As many as 28 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel posted in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, officials said.
They said the personnel were found infected during a contact-tracing exercise after the death of a 44-year-old coronavirus-infected constable on June 6.
All the affected personnel have been isolated and other results are awaited, they said. - PTI
India records highest single-day spike of 9,996 cases, 357 fatalities
The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 8,102 and the number of cases climbed to 2,86,579 in the country after it registered the highest single-day spike of 357 fatalities and 9,996 cases till Thursday 8 a.m., according to the Union Health Ministry data.
The number of recoveries remained more than the active novel coronavirus cases for the second consecutive day.
The number of active cases stands at 1,37,448 while 1,41,028 people have recovered and one patient has migrated to another country, as per the data.
“Thus, around 49.21% patients have recovered so far,” an official said. - PTI
China reports 15 new coronavirus cases
China has reported 15 new coronavirus cases, including 11 confirmed imported infections, the health authority in Beijing said on Thursday.
According to the China National Health Commission (NHC), 11 new COVID-19 cases were reported in China on Wednesday and all of them were imported, including six in Shanghai, three in Guangdong, one in Tianjin and Fujian each.
No new domestically transmitted COVID-19 cases were reported on the Chinese mainland, according to a daily report issued by the NHC. - PTI
441 detained in Manipur for not wearing masks in public places
As many as 441 people have been detained in Manipur for not wearing masks and not maintaining social distancing in public places amid the COVID-19 outbreak, police said.
A total of 467 vehicles were also seized from their possession, they said.
The accused were produced before courts on Wednesday and a total fine of ₹71,300 was imposed on them, a release issued by Additional Director General of Police, L. Kailun said. - PTI
South Korea reports 45 new COVID cases, most in Seoul
South Korea is reporting 45 new cases of COVID-19, all but two of them in the capital region, continuing a weekslong resurgence that health authorities fear could develop into a huge wave.
The figures announced on Thursday bring national totals to 11,947 cases and 276 deaths. The capital of Seoul has 21 new infections, while 22 other cases are in nearby Incheon and Gyeonggi.
South Korea has been reporting around 30 to 50 new cases a day since late May, mostly in the densely populated Seoul area where about half of South Korea’s 51 million people live. - AP
Woman dies due to COVID-19; 6 resident doctors test positive at govt hospital
A 42-year-old woman from the district who had tested positive for coronavirus died at a hospital in Meerut, an official said on Thursday.
According to subdivisional magistrate Inderkant Dwivedi, the woman, a resident of Khatoli town here, was ill for a long time and had tested positive for COVID-19. She died at Subharti Medical Hospital in Meerut Wednesday evening.
Meanwhile, a hostel for resident doctors at the Muzaffarnagar Medical College in Begrajpur in the district has been sealed after six of them tested positive for coronavirus and were shifted to a COVID-care hospital, the official said. - PTI
Brazil's biggest cities start reopening as COVID-19 surges
Brazil's most populous state Sao Paulo reported a record number of COVID-19 deaths for the second day running on Wednesday even as its homonymous metropolis allowed shops to resume business and prepared to reopen its malls.
The state, the epicenter of the pandemic in Brazil, recorded 340 new deaths in the last 24 hours, raising its confirmed death toll to 9,862, a fourth of the country's total fatalities, the governor's office said.
U.S. could reach 2 lakh coronavirus deaths in September, expert says
The United States may see 2,00,000 deaths because of the coronavirus at some point in September, a leading expert said, while total U.S. coronavirus cases surpassed 20 lakh on Wednesday as governments relax restrictions.
Ashish Jha, the head of Harvard's Global Health Institute, told CNN in an interview on Wednesday that without drastic action, the number of U.S. deaths would march on.
( With additional inputs from PTI )
