India posts record daily rise in COVID-19 cases of 386,452

India posted a record daily rise in coronavirus cases of 386,452 on Friday, while deaths from COVID-19 jumped by 3,498 over the last 24 hours, according to health ministry data.

India has added about 7.7 million cases to its total caseload since the end of February, when its second wave picked up steam, according to a Reuters tally. In contrast, it took India nearly six months to add the previous 7.7 million cases.

Even with vaccine rollouts underway, fatalities are still speeding past major milestones across the globe, such as in Brazil where total deaths have now surpassed 400,000 people since the start of the pandemic.

On Thursday, the south Asian nation reported 3,645 deaths over the past 24 hours, while confirmed new cases were more than 379,000. The official numbers are widely believed to be far below reality.

In many Indian cities, hospitals are running out of beds as relatives of the sick jostle for medicines and oxygen cylinders.

“We rushed to multiple hospitals, but were denied admission everywhere,” said the son of an 84-year-old woman who died at home this week after a desperate search for a hospital bed and oxygen in Kolkata, capital of West Bengal state.