Extract from ABC News
As India continues to record grave COVID-19 statistics, the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has attempted to quell criticism over its handling of the country's deadly second wave.
Key points:
- Twitter prevented Indian users from seeing a number of posts critical of authorities' handling of the pandemic
- India's cases surged by 349,691 in the past 24 hours, the fourth-straight day of record peaks
- Hospitals and doctors have put out urgent notices saying they are unable to cope with the rush of patients
He and his government are facing mounting criticism that it let its guard down earlier this year, allowing big religious and political gatherings to take place when India's cases fell to below 10,000 a day but failing to plan for healthcare surge capacity.
The number of cases surged by 349,691 in the past 24 hours, the fourth-straight day of record peaks.
In the last month alone, daily cases have gone up by eight times and deaths by 10 times.
One death every four minutes in New Delhi
The country of 1.3 billion people has recorded a total of 16.96 million infections and 192,311 coronavirus deaths, after 2,767 more died overnight, health ministry data showed. Experts say the death count is probably far higher.
Epidemiologists and virologists say more infectious variants of the virus, including an Indian one known as B1617, have fuelled the ferocious surge.
Doctors at New Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences have found that one COVID-19 patient is now infecting up to nine in 10 contacts, compared with up to four last year.
And in the Indian capital, it is estimated that COVID-19 is killing one person every four minutes.
Attempts to silence criticism
On Saturday, Twitter complied with the government's request and prevented people in India from viewing more than 50 tweets that appeared to criticise the administration's handling of the pandemic.
The targeted posts include tweets from opposition ministers critical of Mr Modi, journalists and ordinary Indians.
A Twitter spokesperson said it had powers to "withhold access to the content in India only" if the company determined the content to be "illegal in a particular jurisdiction".
The company said it had responded to an order by the government and notified people whose tweets were withheld.
India's Information Technology Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Even with the targeted blocks, horrific scenes of overwhelmed hospitals and cremation grounds spread on Twitter and drew appeals for help.
Virus 'swallowing' people 'like a monster'
Hospitals and doctors have put out urgent notices saying they are unable to cope with the rush of patients.
People are dying, sometimes on the roads outside the hospitals, while waiting to see doctors.
In the central city of Bhopal, some crematoriums have increased their capacity from dozens of pyres to more than 50.
Yet officials say there are still hours-long waits.
At the city's Bhadbhada Vishram Ghat crematorium, workers said they cremated more than 110 people on Saturday, even as government figures in the entire city of 1.8 million put the total number of virus deaths at just 10.
"The virus is swallowing our city's people like a monster," Mamtesh Sharma, an official at the site, said.
The unprecedented rush of bodies has forced the crematorium to skip individual ceremonies and exhaustive rituals that Hindus believe release the soul from the cycle of rebirth.
"We are just burning bodies as they arrive," Mr Sharma said.
The head gravedigger at New Delhi's largest Muslim cemetery, where 1,000 people have been buried during the pandemic, said more bodies are arriving now than last year.
"I fear we will run out of space very soon," Mohammad Shameem said.
Various countries begin to assist India
A number of countries have reached out to support New Delhi.
The United States announced it would immediately provide raw materials for COVID-19 vaccines, as well as therapeutics, rapid diagnostic test kits, ventilators and protective equipment for frontline workers.
"We are working closely with our partners in the Indian government, and we will rapidly deploy additional support to the people of India and India's healthcare heroes," US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Twitter.
Help and support has also been offered from India's long-time foe Pakistan, with politicians, journalists and citizens in the neighbouring country expressing solidarity.
Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry said it offered to provide relief including ventilators, oxygen supply kits, digital X-ray machines, PPE and related items.
Ventilators, oxygen supplies, and medicines from the UK, France and the EU are also due to arrive in India in coming days.
ABC/wires
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