India today reported 16,838 fresh coronavirus cases and the tally has climbed to 1,11,73,761, while the number of recoveries has surged to 1,08,39,894, the Union health ministry said on Friday.
The death count due to the viral disease has gone up to 1,57,548 in the country with 113 more fatalities reported in a 24-hour period, the ministry's data showed.
Nearly 17.14 lakh people - from India's general population - have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine in the first four days of the second phase, as the country's vaccination graph continues to improve.
The increase is evident on the ground, and especially at private hospitals, where long queues can be seen all day.
In Delhi, daily vaccinations at private centres have seen a huge jump from the initial 150 per day, with prominent hospitals like Apollo and Max vaccinating nearly 600 each on Thursday.
"People in the senior citizen age group have been coming out in huge numbers and we are trying our level best to ensure the process is smooth for them. Initially there were hiccups in the system and that was expected... but now I think it is gradually becoming better," Dr Sahar Qureshi, Medical Superintendent at the Max Smart Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi's Saket, told NDTV.
