Coronavirus India Updates: Tally Tops 42 Lakhs; Active Cases Approach 9-Lakh Mark

India now has the second highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world, after it overtook Brazil with its record pace of infections.

India added over 90,800 fresh cases in a matter of 24 hours, taking the total tally to over 42 lakh in the world’s second-most populous country, according to the Health Ministry’s update as of 8 a.m. on Sept. 7. That's only behind U.S.’ 63 lakh cases which could also be eclipsed if the virus continues to spread in the country at the current rate.

Key figures:

• Total number of confirmed coronavirus cases: 42,04,613
• Active cases: 8,82,542
• Cured/discharged/migrated: 32,50,429
• Deaths: 71,642
• Number of fresh cases in last 24 hours: 90,802
• One-day recoveries: 69,564
• One-day deaths: 1,016

Despite higher recoveries, deaths due to Covid-19, too, remain elevated. The country has reported more than 1,000 casualties due to the highly contagious pathogen for six straight days.

As the nation with 1.3 billion people crosses yet another grim milestone, the pandemic is threatening to overwhelm an already-overworked healthcare system. Still, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan, in a press briefing during the week ended Sept. 4, claimed that India has the lowest cases per million people in the world. The nation has 2,792 cases per million population compared to 18,802 in Brazil and 18,986 in the U.S., he said.