India Surpasses 200,000 COVID-19 Death Toll, Vaccine Shortages

India's Health Ministry on Wednesday reported 360,960 and the deadliest day thus far, with 3,293 fatalities in the last 24 hours. The country surpassed the 200,000 deaths since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic amid a second wave that has collapsed hospitals and paralyzed the country.

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During the past week, at least 300,000 patients tested positive each day as the overall infection figure nears 18 million people. According to the authorities, 74 percent of cases have been identified in ten out the 28 states. India is the world's second-most populous country.

The images of funeral pyres in New Delhi due to the collapse of crematoriums have been widely shared on social media. Russia and Italy sent humanitarian aid, including oxygen tanks, while the Czech Republic, Austria, and the UK will also send oxygen. Scientists have not specified the causes of this intense second wave. Still, it is thought that variants such as the double mutation B1617 are more transmissible than others, according to the World Health Organization.

Moreover, the country is facing a critical lack of COVID-19 vaccines after a shortage supply of raw materials, most of them blocked by the  U.S. India is the world's largest vaccine manufacturer. However, since January, its authorities have warned that the inability to import raw materials could backfire in vaccination rollout at home and the rest of the world.