Amid a worrying surge in coronavirus cases, India recorded yet another spike of nearly 40,000 fresh infections in the last 24 hours - highest daily-rise since November 29 - as government warns against protocol violations and authorities prepare for a second Covid wave. 39,726 new cases took India's Covid tally to 1,15,14,331; 154 deaths in the last 24 hours took the total number fatalities to 1,59,370. Maharashtra, Punjab, Kerala, Karnataka and Gujarat are the five states that have recorded the highest single-day surge since yesterday, government data shows.