Official global coronavirus death toll passes 400,000 - but true number is likely to be far higher
The worldwide death toll from Covid-19 passed 400,000 on Sunday, according to US experts - although the true number is likely to be far higher.
The total, recorded by researchers at Johns Hopkins University, was passed a day after the Brazilian government stopped publishing a running total of coronavirus deaths and infections.
Critics called the move an attempt to hide the true impact of the disease on Latin America’s largest nation.
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Brazil’s last official numbers recorded over 34,000 virus-related deaths, the third-highest toll in the world behind the US and Britain.
Worldwide, at least 6.9 million people have been infected by the virus, according to Johns Hopkins.
The US has seen nearly 110,000 confirmed virus-related deaths and Europe has recorded over 175,000 since the virus emerged in China late last year.
India reported 9,971 new coronavirus cases on Sunday in the country’s biggest single-day spike, a day before it prepares to reopen shopping malls, hotels and religious places after a 10-week lockdown.
India has now surpassed Spain as the fifth hardest-hit country, with 246,628 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, including 6,929 deaths.
New Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad are among India’s worst-hit cities.
Six of the country’s 28 states account for 73% of the total cases.
India has already partially restored train services and domestic flights and allowed shops and manufacturing to reopen.
E-commerce companies have started to deliver goods, including those considered non-essential, to places outside containment zones.