India Crosses 2 Million Coronavirus Cases

India logged more than 2 million coronavirus cases on Thursday evening, with the countrywide figure standing at 20,06,760. The country is behind Brazil, which has more than 2.8 million cases and the US, which is leading the list of nations hit worst by the pandemic, with close to 5 million cases.

By July 28, India had recorded more than 1.5 million cases. The new 5,00,000 cases came over nine days, with an average of 50,000 fresh cases logged each day.

On Thursday morning, health ministry data showed India has added more than 56,000 cases, taking the total to 19.65 lakh. A total of 13.28 lakh patients have recovered so far, over 40,000 have died.

Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh remain the five states that recorded the highest number of COVID-19 cases. With over 4.6 lakh cases, Maharashtra is the state worst-hit by the outbreak.

National capital Delhi recorded 1,299 fresh coronavirus cases on Thursday, taking the tally to over 1.41 lakh. The number of fatalities mounted to 4,059, with 15 deaths recorded in the last 24 hours, the health authorities said.

Over the last week, several top political leaders -- including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediurappa -- tested positive for the disease. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan, who contracted it earlier, was released from the hospital yesterday.

The United States -- the epicentre of the pandemic -- has announced a new $1 billion investment in a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by pharma giant Johnson & Johnson, guaranteeing 100 million doses.

The World Health Organization has, however, warned that there may never be a "silver bullet" for the new coronavirus.