India’s COVID-19 count breaches 1,000,000 mark

India reported nearly 36,000 new cases of COVID-19 in a single day, bringing the total to cross the 10 lakh mark with 25,000 deaths, according to Health Ministry data. The country of 1.3 billion people is behind only the US and Brazil in the number of confirmed infections and there is no sign yet of the curve flattening. India’s testing rate is also among the lowest in the world in relation to its population.

While cities such as Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Mumbai were among the initial hotspots of the virus in India, newer cases are emerging in rural areas where healthcare infrastructure is much weaker. A fresh lockdown was imposed on Thursday in Bihar, where cases have been rising after thousands of migrant workers returned from cities following a strict lockdown to contain the virus spread.

“While the world’s attention has been focused on the unfolding crisis in the US and South America, a concurrent human tragedy is fast emerging in South Asia,” John Fleming, the Asia Pacific head of health at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said in a statement.

“We now need to urgently turn our attention to this region,” Fleming said, citing dire forecasts that predict thousands of more cases in India in the coming months.

Indian authorities, however, have touted their efforts to contain the virus. “Despite being such a largely populated nation, we can claim to have performed better than any other country,” Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Thursday, citing a fatality rate of 2.57% and recovery rate of 63.25%.