New Delhi, the capital of India, has implemented a one-week "close city" since the evening of the 19th to control the worsening new corona epidemic. The Indian government announced on the same day that it would open vaccination to all adults.

New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the new corona epidemic is "critical" and the health system in New Delhi has almost collapsed. "If the lockdown is not implemented, it will face even greater disaster."

The Associated Press reported that New Delhi has a population of 29 million, but currently there are less than 100 hospital beds equipped with ventilators and less than 150 intensive care beds.

Kejriwal announced on the 19th that the city will be locked from 10 o'clock that night to 5 o'clock in the morning on the 26th, but the basic living services of residents will not be affected. He urged everyone to remain calm about "close city."

India has a population of about 1.3 billion. On the 19th, 273,810 new confirmed cases of new corona were reported in a single day, a new high since the outbreak. This is the fifth consecutive day that there are more than 200,000 new cases in a single day in India. As of that day, the total number of confirmed cases of new corona in India has exceeded 15 million, and the total number of deaths has exceeded 178 thousand.

India has received 120 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine so far. The government said on the 19th that it will open the new corona vaccination to all adults over 18 years old across the country from May 1.

Two Indian government sources told Reuters on the same day that the foreign ministers of India and the United States have already spoken. The Indian side hopes that the United States will lift the export ban on raw materials for the new corona vaccine as soon as possible, which has threatened India’s vaccine production.

One of the officials said that the US informed that it is considering the Indian request and will take action "as soon as possible."

In this regard, the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that there is nothing more to add except that Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaishan Su said on social media that he and US Secretary of State Anthony Brinken discussed "issues related to health cooperation."

The US State Department confirmed that Brinken and Jason Su were discussing the new corona epidemic, but did not disclose details.

In April last year, then US President Donald Trump used the National Defense Production Act to increase the amount of medical assets related to COVID-19 vaccination. Indian vaccine manufacturers and experts expressed concern about the US’s approach, believing that the US’s move may trigger the suspension of exports of key raw materials and restrict the production of vaccines in other regions.

Reuters reported that India has now stopped exporting major vaccines to meet domestic demand. (Liu Xi) (Xinhua News Agency special feature)