New Delhi, April 22:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Thursday he will not address poll rallies in West Bengal on Friday, and will instead chair high-level meetings in Delhi over the worsening situation of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in the country.
“Tomorrow, will be chairing high-level meetings to review the prevailing Covid-19 situation. Due to that, I would not be going to West Bengal,” PM Modi tweeted on Thursday evening.
Prime Minister Modi’s announcement came on a day the Union ministry of health and family welfare (MoHFW) said that in the last 24 hours, India registered 314,835 new coronavirus cases, which includes a record 2104 single-day fatalities due to the viral disease. This was the first time the country saw more than 300,000 fresh infections, the highest single-day rise in cases anywhere in the world since the beginning of the pandemic in early 2020.
India is currently in the grip of a deadly second wave of the infection, registering record number of new cases everyday, more than even during the first wave last year. In fact, there have been more than 100,000 daily cases since April 5, which was the first time the said mark was topped. On April 15, more than 200,000 infections were detected in the country for the first time.
Also on Thursday, PM Modi chaired a high-level meeting to review the state of oxygen supply amid complaints of shortage from hospitals in various parts of the country.
Due to the surge in Covid-19 cases, political parties in West Bengal, where eight-phased assembly elections are currently underway, have announced steps to ensure social distancing in their respective rallies. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has already announced the suspension of his rallies. On Thursday, the eastern state voted in the sixth round of polling, with the final two rounds scheduled to take place on April 26 and 29.
