India Surpasses 270,000 Daily Cases Amid Surge of Double Mutation Variant

Emergency Lockdown in Capital New Delhi, Expanded to All Adults Before Vaccination
Entry Ban from UK... Prime Minister Johnson's India Visit Plan Also Canceled

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] In India, where the double mutant COVID-19 virus is spreading widely, the daily number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surpassed 270,000, setting a new record. The Indian government urgently imposed lockdown measures in the capital, New Delhi, to curb the spread of COVID-19 and announced that starting next month, vaccination, which was previously conducted in stages for those aged 45 and older, will be expanded to include all adults aged 18 and above. Ahead of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's planned visit to India, the UK canceled the visit due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in India and designated India as a banned entry country.

According to the BBC on the 19th (local time), Indian health authorities reported that the daily number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in India reached 273,000, setting a new record. India's cumulative confirmed cases have surpassed 15 million, ranking second in the world after the United States, and there are concerns that at the current pace, India may soon surpass the US.

India had previously celebrated its success in controlling the pandemic as the number of confirmed cases surged to 90,000 in September last year but dropped to 10,000 in February this year. However, the spread, which began to surge this month, has intensified, exceeding 200,000 cases this month. The Indian government announced that it will enforce an emergency lockdown in the capital New Delhi and expand the COVID-19 vaccination program from next month to include all adults aged 18 and above, instead of the current staged vaccination for those aged 45 and older.

Meanwhile, on the same day, the UK judged the COVID-19 spread in India to be severe and added India to the 'red list' of banned entry countries. The UK government will ban entry from the 23rd for those who have stayed in India for at least 10 days. People with UK or Ireland nationality or UK residency are allowed entry but must self-isolate for ten days in a government-designated hotel. Earlier, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had planned to visit India next week, but all related schedules were canceled.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.