Global coronavirus caseload crosses 248 million

Gulf Today Report

More than 248,308,490 people have been reported infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 5,029,360 people have died, according to a reputable website https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ tally on Wednesday.

Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in December 2019.

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India registered 11,903 fresh COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Wednesday.

In the same period, 311 new fatalities were reported, pushing the death toll to 4,59,191.

India registers 11,903 fresh coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours on Wednesday. File photo

The recovery of 14,159 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 3,36,97,740. Consequently, the country's recovery rate has increased to 98.22 per cent.

The active caseload stands at 1,51,209, the lowest in last 252 days.

Several Russian regions said on Tuesday they could impose additional restrictions or extend a workplace shutdown to fight a surge in COVID-19 cases that has already prompted Moscow to re-impose a partial lockdown nationwide.

Russia reported 1,178 deaths related to COVID-19 on Tuesday, its highest daily death toll since the start of the pandemic, as well as 39,008 new infections.

President Vladimir Putin last month ordered a week-long nationwide workplace shutdown from Oct. 30 that could be extended by regional authorities as they see fit. The Novgorod region has already announced it is prolonging the shutdown by a week.

A nurse treats a virus patient. Unvaccinated people are particularly exposed to the virulent Delta strain. File photo

On Tuesday authorities in the Pskov region, which borders Estonia, Latvia and Belarus, said the QR code system used to access certain public facilities would remain in place during the New Year holidays.

Ireland's daily COVID-19 cases have surpassed the 3,000 mark for the first time since mid-January of this year, official data showed.

The Irish Department of Health said a total of 3,726 new confirmed cases were reported on Tuesday, up by nearly 31 per cent from Monday's 2,855 cases.

The country saw a spike in COVID-19 cases with the daily count averaging over 2,700 in the last six days, the fastest pace since the middle of this January, Xinhua news agency reported.