India has registered 92,605 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours and is expected to surpass the United States as the pandemic's worst-hit country within weeks. The health ministry on Sunday also reported 1,133 additional deaths for a total of 86,752. Sunday's surge raised the country's virus tally to over 5.4 million. India, however, also has the highest number of recovered patients in the world, according to Johns Hopkins University. Its recovery rate stands at about 80 percent. Over 60 percent of the active cases are concentrated in five of India's 28 states — Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has faced scathing criticism for its handling of the pandemic amid a contracting economy that left millions jobless. Meanwhile, the ongoing monsoon session of Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) will be curtailed by several days, the government decided on Saturday after consultations with the opposition. The government is concerned for the safety of MPs after three of them — who had attended the session — tested positive for the coronavirus earlier this week, days after their mandatory test reports turned out negative. The government had earlier held a discussion with the opposition as it had been trying to build a consensus. Many opposition parties were also in favor of winding up the session. The session in Lok Sabha is likely to wrap up by Wednesday next week. Rajya Sabha, the upper house of parliament, is expected to follow suit. — Agencies
