Worrisome figures in India.

The country became on Monday, September 7 the second country in the world after the United States with the highest number of Covid-19 cases, overtaking Brazil, while the pandemic is back in force in the United Kingdom, France and in several other countries.

The second most populous nation on the planet counted 4.2 million infections on Monday since the start of the health crisis, against 4.12 million in Brazil and 6.25 million in the United States, according to figures compiled by the AFP from official data.

"Quite alarming"

However, this data did not prevent the metro from resuming service after months of shutdown in most cities, including Mumbai and the capital New Delhi, a megalopolis of 21 million people.

For virologist Shahid Jameel of the Wellcome Trust / DBT India Alliance, the crucial data to watch is the growth rate of new cases.

And in the case of India, it is progressing at a "rather alarming" rate.

"Over the past two weeks, the average has risen from around 65,000 to 83,000 cases per day, an increase of about 27% over two weeks, and 2% per day," Shahid Jameel told AFP .

In many countries where the epidemic seemed to have taken a break since the end of spring, the number of new contaminations is experiencing an alarming increase, especially in Europe where residents are returning to school, university or work afterwards. summer vacation.

Cases mainly identified in the youngest

On Sunday, the United Kingdom recorded nearly 3,000 new positive cases, an unprecedented number since the end of May.

"The increase we have seen today is worrying," UK Health Minister Matt Hancock told Sky News, stressing that these new cases are mainly being diagnosed in "younger people".

The epidemic is also gaining ground in France with nearly 25,000 new cases in three days, including a peak of 9,000 on Friday.

Worldwide, the epidemic has killed more than 880,000 people since the end of December, according to a count established by AFP from official data.

The most bereaved countries are the United States (188,540 dead), Brazil (126,203) and India (71,642).

Despite the uncertainties hanging over the global health situation, a senior official from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Monday that the Tokyo Games, postponed to 2021, will go well next year "with or without" coronavirus.

"It will be the Games that will have defeated the Covid, the light at the end of the tunnel," John Coates told AFP the president of the IOC coordination committee for the 2020 Olympics.

With AFP

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