Abandoning lockdown, India’s coronavirus cases to triple up by July 15

Despite trying a costly, nationwide lockdown at the end of March, India’s coronavirus outbreak is projected to nearly triple by July 15, to over 800,000 cases. In fact, the lockdown pushed India toward its first full-year economic contraction. 

With lockdowns too costly to continue, and the rise of new cases each day, India must now focus on limiting casualties. As India’s infection number has climbed, the Government has taken to pointing to the country’s reported fatality rate. Bhramar Mukherjee, a Professor of Biostatistics at the University of Michigan, feels that until herd community catches up, India can expect a ‘cascade of peaks’ as the pandemic sweeps around the country.

 Update by Arunima Dutta