The cumulative number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in India passed 30 million on Wednesday, becoming the first country after the United States to surpass that number.
Although the outbreak in India has shown signs of slowing down for more than half a month, the emergence of the new mutant strain, low vaccination rates, and the massive movement of people caused by the unblocking of the virus mean that the situation in India is still not optimistic. Experts have warned that India is likely to be hit by a third wave of the disease.
More than 50,000 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in India, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to over 30.2 million, according to the Ministry of Health. There were 1,358 additional deaths, bringing the total number of deaths to more than 390,000. As of Wednesday, the number of new confirmed cases in India has stayed below 100,000 a day for 16 consecutive days.
With the number of new confirmed cases falling in a single day, many Indian states and regions are gradually easing prevention measures. New Delhi, the capital, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and other states have announced plans to allow public places such as shopping malls, restaurants and bars to reopen.
This was followed by a mass movement of people. A total of 3.3 million migrant workers migrated to major cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai from all over India in the week ending June 11, Indian media reported Tuesday, citing Ministry of Railways data. About three million people are expected to flood into major cities on January 19 and 28, the Railways Ministry said.
Experts: India is likely to face a third wave of the disease
Several experts believe India is likely to be hit by a third wave. Randeep Gurria, director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, a leading medical institute in New Delhi, said recently that the country has begun to loosen its containment but there is still no response, and that a third wave of the disease is inevitable and could hit India in the next six to eight weeks or later.
Experts say the emergence of the Delta strain and the newly discovered “Delta +” strain, as well as lower vaccination rates, will hasten the arrival of a third wave.
