Indian data hints at runaway virus spread as daily deaths hit record By MANAS MISHRA and TANVI MEHTA, Reuters Published May 19, 2021 6:06pm Health workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) carry wood to prepare a funeral pyre for COVID-19 victims during a mass cremation at a crematorium in New Delhi, India, on April 26, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi BENGALURU — Nearly two-thirds of people tested in India have shown exposure to the novel coronavirus, a chain of private laboratories said on Wednesday, indicating a runaway spread of the virus as the daily death toll rose to a record 4,529. India reported 267,334 new daily infections on Wednesday, taking its tally to 25.5 million, with a death toll of 283,248, health ministry data showed.