13th April: In India, under the second wave, new infection is spreading like a wildfire, making new records almost daily in terms of the number of people infected. Yesterday, India left behind Brazil to become the second worst-hit country after the United States in terms of Covid-19 infection. Many states in the country are reporting high daily caseloads.
India in dire need to stop the disease as it crossed some dark landmarks on Monday:
India recorded 1,68,912 new Covid-19 infections, the highest ever since the pandemic began. It now has 1,35,27,717 total cases, leaving behind Brazil which according to Johns Hopkins University has reported 1,34,82,023 infections. Only the United States is ahead with 3,11,98,055.
The active cases in the country surpassed the 12-lakh mark, the highest-ever. These cases were above one million in September last year but started declining after that. The recent resurgence has once again shot up the number of active Covid-19 cases.
India is in the fourth spot in the Covid death tally behind the US, Brazil, and Mexico.
The positivity rate of the country has climbed to 10.7 percent from an all-time low of 1.47 percent on February 13. The high positivity rate of tests underlines the severity of the second wave in India.
Delhi, West Bengal, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana recorded their highest-ever daily cases of Covid-19 on Monday. In Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh, the current seven-day-average of cases are 1.8 to 3.2 times their peak seven-day averages.
The coronavirus disease killed 72 people in Uttar Pradesh, the state’s highest single-day toll this month, according to the state health department’s data on Monday.
With pressure mounting, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) approved the emergency useauthorization of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine yesterday. 
Right after that, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) announced that it is aiming at the production of more than 850 million doses per year in India. Sputnik V, notably, is one of the three coronavirus vaccines registered by India‘s regulatory authorities.
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