India reported its lowest daily tally of coronavirus cases in almost a month on Tuesday as it prepares for clinical trials of a potential Russian vaccine in the next few weeks.
Federal health data showed 75,083 new cases in the last 24 hours, and 1,053 deaths over the same period.
There have been 5.6 million cases in total in the country, second only behind the United States. The total death toll stands at 88,935 people.
Despite the fall in cases on Tuesday, India is consistently reporting the highest tally of daily cases anywhere in the world as a dense population and often rudimentary healthcare infrastructure hamper attempts to control the pandemic.
More than 31.53 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 970,400 have died, according to Worldometers tally.
Infections have been reported in more than 213 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.
Meanwhile, some 156 nations have joined a global scheme for fair distribution of future vaccines against COVID-19, an alliance led by the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday, but superpowers China and the United States did not sign up.
US President Donald Trump's government has already secured future supplies through bilateral deals, prompting accusations of selfish behaviour to the detriment of poor countries.
China, where the coronavirus began, was also missing on the list of 64 rich nations who joined the so-called COVAX plan to deliver 2 billion vaccine doses round the world by the end of 2021, prioritising healthcare workers and the vulnerable.
The scheme would account for about two-thirds of the world population, according to the WHO and GAVI vaccine alliance, which published the list of signatories after a deadline for binding commitments expired on Friday.
Another report adds: A senior pharmaceutical industry official said on Tuesday that a price range between 5 and 15 euros ($6 to $18) per dose was reasonable for COVID-19 vaccines.
A price between 5 and 15 euros a dose "is a reasonable price for a vaccine," Sue Middleton, President of the Executive Board, of Vaccines Europe told a hearing in the EU Parliament.
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