Brazil has surpassed Russia to become the second country in the world with highest cases of novel Coronavirus, second to the US, after reporting over 33,000 infections, a record high, on Saturday.

According to Reuters, Brazil's health ministry said the country on Saturday registered 33,274 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 4,98,440. The death toll also increased to 28,834, with 956 new deaths in the past 24 hours, the ministry said. Despite a sharp rise in cases, several states are planning to ease the lockdown, ignoring the health experts's warning that the worst is yet to come, reported Reuters.