'Make-or-break week' for India as cases rise to 5194; 149 dead

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Tracker Live Updates: The number of active coronavirus cases in India rose to 5,194 on Wednesday, including the 149 patients who have died and 401 who have been treated and discharged. As the last week of the three-week lockdown begins, the government is preparing to scale up testing in this "make-or-break week".

On a day that the death toll due to the coronavirus crossed 11,000 in the US, President Donald Trump threatened to cut funding to the World Health Organization (WHO), saying the international group "missed the call" on the coronavirus pandemic. The country has over 398,000 cases. In New York alone, over 3,200 have died, which is more than the number of people killed at the World Trade Centre on 9/11.

The global death toll rose to over 82,000 on Wednesday, while more than 1.4 million were infected, including 300,000 who have been treated and discharged.

Wuhan, where COVID-19 originated in December, lifted lockdown today after more than 10 weeks. There are still some restrictions in place for individuals, businesses and schools, and authorities have urged people to remain indoors. According to the local media, over 55,000 people are expected to leave the city by tonight.

In other news, Boris Johnson remained in critical care after testing positive for the virus. And, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a month-long state of emergency in Tokyo and six other prefectures.

(Inputs and image from theindianexpress.com)