Australia’s Victoria state sees a jump in new locally acquired cases of Covid-19 as the government prepares to extend a hard lockdown to contain an outbreak of the Delta variant, reports Reuters.

The lockdown is due to end on Thursday but Premier Daniel Andrews has flagged an extension given the steady rise in infections.

A total of 120 new local cases have been detected in Victoria, up from 76 a day earlier. Of the new cases, 56 are not linked to any infections in the current outbreak.