Center for Global Development study's estimate is the highest yet for the carnage in the South Asian nation of 1.3 billion people, which is emerging from a devastating surge partly fuelled by the Delta variant in April and May.
The study analysed suggested that 34 lakh to 47 lakh people had died from the virus from the start of the pandemic to June this year. "True deaths are likely to be in the several millions, not hundreds of thousands, making this arguably India's worst human tragedy since partition and independence," the researchers said.
The center's report was based on estimating "excess mortality", the number of extra people who died compared with pre-crisis figures.