India votes in local elections amid COVID-19 pandemic

NEW DELHI, India

As India detected more than 50,000 new coronavirus infections Saturday, millions of people are lining up to vote in the final phase of regional election in the eastern state of Bihar.

The polls, which are the first large-scale elections in the country since the outbreak of pandemic earlier this year, is being held in three phases and results will be declared next week.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged residents in Bihar to cast votes.

According to an update released Saturday by health authorities, 50,356 cases were reported in the last 24 hours, taking the number of cases to 8.46 million.

The death toll stands at 125,562 which includes 577 new fatalities.

While India is witnessing a steady decline in COVID-19 cases, many cities, including New Delhi, are again recording a spike in new infections.

For the first time Friday, New Delhi detected a record high of 7,000 cases for the first time.

As per the health ministry, India is reporting new recoveries more than daily new cases successively for five weeks.