India expands COVID restrictions and boosts vaccination program amid a 2nd wave of infections

New Delhi — The number of new coronavirus cases recorded in India has been rising steadily for a month, pushing the country into a second wave as daily infection rates inch back toward those seen during the worst of the pandemic. More than 375,000 new COVID-19 cases have been reported over the last 10 days, and the Health Ministry confirmed 47,262 on Wednesday alone, taking India's total number of confirmed coronavirus infections over 11.73 million.

The disease has claimed more than 160,000 lives in the country.   "The main reason why cases are increasing is because there are large crowds, poor compliance with wearing of masks and social distancing, and insufficient vaccine penetration," Dr Ramanan Laxminarayan, founder and director of the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy in Washington D.C., told CBS News.