Passengers maintain social distance inside a compartment of metro train in New Delhi, India, on Sept. 7, 2020. (Photo by Partha Sarkar/Xinhua)
The number of COVID-19 cases in India rose by 89,706 during the past 24 hours, taking the tally to 4,370,128, and 1,115 deaths were recorded since Tuesday, bringing the death toll to 73,890, according to latest data released by the federal health ministry on Wednesday.
Still there are 897,394 active COVID-19 cases across the country, while 3,398,844 people have been cured and discharged till date.
Over the past couple of weeks, India has been focusing on ramping up testing capacity, as 51,804,677 samples had been tested till Tuesday, out of which 1,154,549 tests were conducted on Tuesday alone.
India is currently passing through the Unlock 4 phase. With effect from Wednesday, all restaurants and bars have been opened. Metro rail services were resumed from Monday in a graded manner maintaining social distancing.
On Tuesday, the central government issued standard operating procedures (SOPs) regarding partial reopening of schools, saying students in classes 9-12 can attend classes with effect from Sept. 21.
"Students would be allowed to visit their respective schools on voluntary basis for taking guidance from their teachers," said one of the SOPs. They will be allowed to visit their schools with written consent of their parents or guardians.
