HomeNewsIndiaCOVID-19 Second Wave: India's death toll crosses 3 lakh, more than 1 lakh have died in the last 26 days

COVID-19 Second Wave: India's death toll crosses 3 lakh, more than 1 lakh have died in the last 26 days

The death toll now stands at 3,03,720, just 12 days after the country's reported 2,54,197 deaths on May 11.

May 24, 2021 / 10:48 IST
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In the month of May, the country has so far recorded 91,867 fatalities due to COVID-19. (Representative image: Reuters)
In the month of May, the country has so far recorded 91,867 fatalities due to COVID-19. (Representative image: Reuters)

India recorded 4,454 COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the number of dead to above 3 lakh, making it only the third country after the US and Brazil to cross the grim milestone, the latest health ministry update shows.

Around 1 lakh people have died in the last 26 days in India, the highest for any country. In the United States, the death toll increased from 3.5 lakh to 4.5 lakh in 31 days during the third wave of the pandemic between December 2020 and January 2021, reported The Times of India citing Worldometers.

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In May alone, 91,867 fatalities people have died on COVID, up from 2,11,853 on April 30, as per the health ministry’s data.

India has reported 3,03,720 deaths since its first case was recorded in early 2020, with almost 50,0000 people dying in just 12 days. On May 11, India's death toll was 2,54,197.

COVID-19 Vaccine
Frequently Asked Questions

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How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.
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