PM Modi holds 'high-level meeting' as Covid-19 cases rise in India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is meeting senior civil servants in Delhi to review rising Covid-19 cases in the country and the vaccination campaign, multiple reports said on Sunday.

The cabinet secretary, the principal secretary to the Prime Minister, the health secretary, and Dr Vinod Paul, a NITI Aayog member, were among officials attending the "high-level meeting", according to NDTV.com and news agency ANI.

India reported a record 93,249 fresh Covid-19 cases on Sunday pushing the overall tally to 124,85,509, according to government data. The death toll from the disease increased to 164.

India's biggest cities braced for stricter lockdowns and other Covid-19 curbs as infections hit a six-month high, as a month-long surge continued in the country third-worst hit by the pandemic.

Maharashtra on Saturday reported 49,447 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest rise in a day so far, taking the tally to 29,53,523 while 277 fatalities pushed the toll to 55,656, the state health department said. Maharashtra, which has the largest number of cases among states, may on Sunday announce fresh restrictions to contain the disease. 

Chief Minister Udhhav Thackeray on Saturday warned citizens of a lockdown if cases continued to rise at their current rate, saying medical infrastructure would be inadequate in a couple of weeks.

In Karnataka, authorities ordered gyms to be closed, barred functions at religious places and told cinema halls, bars, pubs and restaurants to limit the number of people allowed in.

New Delhi recorded more than 3,500 cases, its highest this year, but its chief minister ruled out another lockdown for now.

(With inputs from ANI and Reuters.)