The global tally of coronavirus infections is dangerously close to breaching the 1.9-million mark, and the death toll across nations now stands at 114,979, with the highest number of fatalities in the United States. Recoveries are still well below half a million.
India currently has over 9,500 reported cases, and 335 fatalities. Less than 10 per cent of all cases have recovered so far. Many states in the country have already announced an extension of the lockdown until the end of April.
Here are some data trends that explain the current coronavirus pandemic situation:
1. Turkey is seeing Asia’s steepest rise in infections; India’s trajectory also picking up
With its number of Covid-19 positive cases inching closer to the 10,000 mark, India has now become fifth-most-affected Asian country. Iran, one of the first to experience the outbreak outside China, is the worst hit with more than 70,000 cases. Turkey, at present, is witnessing the sharpest rise in infections among Asian countries, with its number of cases rising from 100 to 50,000 in just 23 days.
South Korea, which saw a surge in cases in early March, has since managed to contain the spread. Nearly three-fourths of all reported cases in South Korea have now recovered. Meanwhile, the recent surge in its number of coronavirus-positive cases propped up India’s trajectory.
2. New coronavirus cases in China near three-week high
China, where the Covid-19 outbreak originally began, is again seeing a surge in new cases.
The country added more than 100 cases in a single day for the first time in three weeks. Most of these cases were imported. The country had posed stringent restrictions on movement of people for over two months, and the measures were eased only a couple of weeks ago. China’s tally of cases currently stands at 82,160, of which 95 per cent cases have recovered already.
3. Russia sees sharpest single-day spike in cases
In Europe, Russia on April 12 saw a sharp rise in number of new cases added in a single day, at 2,186. The country has added over 1,400 cases daily for three straight days now. Russia’s total tally of infections stands at 18,328, and fatalities at 148. Only 8 per cent of all reported cases in the country have recovered so far.
4. Madhya Pradesh has highest death rate in India
At 7.8 per cent, Madhya Pradesh currently has the highest fatality rate among all states in India. Maharashtra, which has the highest number of cases, comes a close second. And Kerala, one of the first states to take proactive measures to limit the spread of the outbreak, has one of the lowest fatality rates at 0.5 per cent.