The global Covid-19 death toll passed three million on Saturday as the pandemic continues to speed up despite vaccination campaigns, leading countries like India to impose new lockdowns to fight spiraling infection numbers. It is the latest grim milestone after the novel coronavirus surfaced in central China in December 2019 and went on to infect more than 139 million people, leaving billions more under crippling lockdowns and ravaging the global economy. An average of more than 12,000 deaths were recorded globally every day in the past week, shooting the overall toll past three million at around 0830 GMT on Saturday, according to an AFP tally. And the pandemic is showing no sign of slowing down: the 829,596 new infections reported worldwide on Friday is the highest number yet, according to AFPs tally. The daily average of 731,000 cases registered over the last week is also close to being a record. Indias capital New Delhi went into a weekend lockdown Saturday as the worlds second-most populous nation recorded 234,000 new cases and 1,341 deaths. India now has three times the daily cases of the United States, the worlds worst-hit nation, and families are clamoring for drugs and hospital beds. Hopes that South Asian countries might have seen the worst of the pandemic have been dashed, with India recording over two million new cases this month alone and Bangladesh and Pakistan imposing new shutdowns. Udaya Regmi of the international Red Cross said the "truly frightening" South Asian surge was a "wake-up call to the world". "Vaccines must be available to everyone, everywhere, rich and poor to overcome this terrible pandemic," Regmi added. Richer countries that have waged mass inoculation efforts have seen their virus numbers plummet. Britain, which has given 60 percent of the population at least one vaccination dose, now records around 30 deaths a day -- down from 1,200 in late January.