India reports new record number of coronavirus cases and deaths

People wait to receive a vaccine in Mumbai, India (Rafiq Maqbool/AP)

India has reported a record 295,041 coronavirus cases, as the death toll crossed 2,000 in a day for the first time.

Even with hospitals struggling, Prime Minister Narendra Modi advised state governments against imposing a harsh lockdown in favour of micro-containment zones as he sought to avoid another economic slump.