Top Stories this AM: Bodies on the banks of the Ganges; Cheney's unlikely ally; a tiger on the lam in Houston

Good morning and welcome to your weekday morning roundup of the top stories you need to know.

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What's going on today:

• "I would have lived had I received better treatment," Indian vlogger Rahul Vohra wrote in a final Facebook post before succumbing to COVID-19. Vohra made sure to tag Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the post. Modi has been criticised for his tepid response to the continuing health crisis in the country. "You try and call out for the attendant, but they don't come," he said in a final video from his hospital bed. "They come in an hour's time or more, and you have to manage in their absence somehow."
• Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney finds an unlikely ally in Iowa Republican Joni Ernst. Ernst, a staunch Trump supporter, came to the defense of the embattled House Republican Conference chair while speaking to reporters on Monday. "Cancel culture is cancel culture, no matter how you look at it," Ernst said. "And, unfortunately, I think there are those that are trying to silence others in the party."
• The bodies of COVID patients are washing up on the banks of the Ganges River. As India's COVID crisis crests, families of victims struggle to find open cemetery plots or afford wood to build funeral pyres. The Ganges is seen as a viable alternative for Indian funeral rites as the river's waters, known as "Gangaa Jal," are believed to have purifying powers.
• The West Coast may be the Best Coast - at least when it comes to fighting COVID. Los Angeles County officials say that the county should reach herd immunity by July - if they can administer around 2 million more COVID vaccine doses before then.
• People are paying a Pakistani barber to literally set their heads on fire. Barber Ali Abbas, based in Lahore uses blowtorches, meat cleavers, and cutting boards to create unique and - let's be honest - terrifying haircuts.
• A Bengal tiger remains on the loose in a Houston, Texas, suburb after a day-long hunt for the animal. And you thought you had problems...

That's all for now. See you tomorrow.