Coronavirus: What’s happening in Canada and around the world on Monday

The latest numbers came after leaders of 13 opposition parties penned a letter to urge the government to launch a free vaccination drive as well as ensure uninterrupted flow of oxygen to all hospitals. Several hospital authorities over the weekend sought court intervention over oxygen supplies in New Delhi, where a lockdown has been extended by a week to contain the wave of infections.

The New Delhi High Court said it would start punishing government officials if supplies of oxygen allocated to hospitals were not delivered.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has been severely criticized over the handling of the surge, which has pushed India’s already fragile and underfunded health system to the brink. Massive election rallies organized by Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party and other parties as well as a giant Hindu festival on the banks of the Ganges may have exacerbated the spread, experts said, while new variants could also be increasing cases.

Modi’s party on Sunday suffered a resounding election defeat in a key state, West Bengal, failing to dislodge its firebrand chief minister, Mamata Banerjee. The BJP retained power in northeastern Assam state but lost in two southern states.

While the four states were already stiff election challenges for the BJP apart from the pandemic, analysts say the results weaken Modi’s position as surging infections cripple the already fragile health system.

India has confirmed 19.9 million cases of infection since the start of the pandemic, behind only the U.S., which counts more than 32.4 million. More than 218,000 people in India have died from COVID-19, according to the health ministry. Both figures are thought to be vast undercounts.

India opened its vaccination campaign to people ages 18 to 44 on Saturday, a mammoth task being undermined by limited supplies.

India is the world’s biggest producer of vaccines, but even the ongoing effort to inoculate people above 45 is stuttering. Since January, 10 per cent of Indians have received one dose, but only around 1.5 per cent have received both required doses.

-From The Associated Press, last updated at 7 a.m. ET

What’s happening across Canada

WATCH LIVE | Merrilee Fullerton speaks after commission finds Ontario’s long-term care sector was unprepared for pandemic:

As COVID-19 cases hit triple digits in Nova Scotia, the province adapted its widespread testing strategy. 2:06

As of 10:05 a.m. ET on Monday, Canada had reported 1,237,640 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 83,555 considered active. A CBC tally of deaths stood at 24,316.

Ontario on Monday reported 3,426 new cases of COVID-19 and 16 additional deaths. Hospitalizations stood at 1,925, with 889 in ICU due to COVID-related illnesses. 

This week and next, the province will send half of its vaccine supply to the hot spots, based on recommendations from the government’s scientific advisers. Adults living in the 114 specific postal codes designated as hot spots can start booking their shots at 8 a.m. ET.

In Atlantic Canada on Sunday, Nova Scotia reported 133 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the number of active cases in the province to 822. The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the province stood at 34, with six in intensive care.

WATCH | Nova Scotia adapts testing strategy amid COVID-19 spike:

Newfoundland and Labrador reported seven new cases of COVID-19, while 11 cases were reported among crew members on a cargo ship. New Brunswick, meanwhile, recorded six new cases and one additional death, and there was one new case reported on Prince Edward Island.

In Quebec, health officials reported 1,006 new cases and nine additional deaths on Sunday. COVID-19 hospitalizations stood at 574, with 157 people in intensive care.

Across the Prairies on Sunday, Manitoba reported 281 new cases of COVID-19 and two additional deaths, while Saskatchewan reported 238 new cases and one additional death. 

The legislature in one of Canada’s COVID-19 hot spots is shutting down for two weeks. The Alberta government said the move is aimed at slowing the rampant spread of the coronavirus after case counts in the province hit a new high, with 22,920 active cases.

British Columbia will report updated figures covering the weekend later Monday.

Across the North, there were 11 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Nunavut on Sunday, while health officials in the Northwest Territories reported six new confirmed cases and 10 probable cases connected in Yellowknife. There were no new cases reported in Yukon.

-From CBC News and The Canadian Press, last updated at 10:10 a.m. ET

What’s happening around the world

As of early Monday morning, more than 152.8 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, according to a case-tracking tool maintained by Johns Hopkins University. The reported global death toll stood at more than 3.2 million.

Moderna and vaccine promoter Gavi have announced a deal by which the pharmaceutical company will provide up to 500 million coronavirus vaccine doses for the UN-backed program to ship to needy people in low- and middle-income countries by the end of 2022.

The advance purchase agreement comes just days after the World Health Organization, after weeks of delays, announced emergency approval for the Moderna vaccine that will pave the way for its rollout in the UN-backed COVAX program. However, deliveries are not set to begin until the fourth quarter of this year, and the vast majority of the doses in the deal — 466 million — are planned for next year.

In Europe, Spain is extending the gap between the first and second doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine to 16 weeks for people aged under 60, going beyond the 12-week maximum interval approved by European authorities.

Britain, meanwhile, is on course to ditch on June 21 the social distancing rule that means people need to stay at least one metre apart, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Nepal is halting all domestic and international flights because of spiking cases of COVID-19 in the Himalayan nation.

Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli said domestic flights would be stopped from Monday while all international flights would cease to fly in and out of Nepal from Thursday. He appealed to other countries for vaccines, diagnostic equipment, oxygen and other supplies to help combat the pandemic.

Thailand reported a new daily record of 31 coronavirus deaths, the health ministry said, as the Southeast Asian country grapples with a third wave of infections.

In the Americas, the U.S. CDC says more than 245 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered, with more than 104 million people listed as fully vaccinated.

In Africa, Uganda has detected the B1617 variant, stirring fears the East African nation could suffer a resurgence of cases just when its outbreak has waned, a senior health official said.

In the Middle East, Iran’s reported COVID-19 case numbers stood at more than 2.5 million, with more than 72,400 recorded deaths.

-From The Associated Press and Reuters, last updated at 9:35 a.m. ET

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