India on Sunday (Aug 30) set a coronavirus record when it reported 78,761 new infections in 24 hours – the world's highest single-day rise – even as it continued to open up the economy.
Home to 1.3 billion people, India is already the world's third-most infected nation with more than 3.5 million cases, behind the US and Brazil.
It has also reported more than 63,000 deaths, according to the official health ministry toll.
The US set the previous record on Jul 17 with 77,638 daily infections, according to a tally.
In his regular monthly radio address on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not comment on the milestone but called on Indians to observe health safety measures.
"It is important that every citizen is healthy and happy and we defeat coronavirus completely together", Modi said in Hindi.
"Corona (virus) can only be defeated when you remain safe, when you fulfil the resolve of keeping a safe distance of two yards and wearing masks."
Experts warn that while a ramp up in testing in recent months was encouraging, more needed to be done to capture the scale of the pandemic in the world's second-most populous nation.
The virus has badly hit megacities such as financial hub Mumbai and the capital New Delhi, but is now also surging in smaller cities and rural areas.
– Source: News websites
