96,982 new cases reported in India
A single-day spike of 96,982 infections, a day after India breached the one-lakh mark in daily cases, has taken the country’s coronavirus caseload to over 1.26 crore, data from the Union Health Ministry this morning showed.
The number of deaths climbed to 1,65,547 with 446 people dying of COVID-19 in a span of 24 hours. India is the country with the third-highest coronavirus caseload in the world after the United States and Brazil.
Maharashtra, the worst-hit state in the country, reported 47,288 new coronavirus cases, pushing the total count in the state to over 3.23 lakh.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow people above 25 years of age to receive COVID-19 shots, which he said will protect the young people from the rapid spread of coronavirus at a time when they are stepping outside their homes to earn a livelihood.