Ghulam Nabi Azad tests positive for COVID-19

New Delhi [India], June 21 (ANI): Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad has tested positive for COVID-19.
Confirming the development, Azad wrote on his Twitter handle today, "I have tested covid positive today and am under home quarantine."
Meanwhile, India has seen a marginal decline in infections in the country in the last 24 hours. The country on Tuesday recorded 9,923 fresh cases of Coronavirus infection and 17 deaths due to COVID-19 in the country.
India had on Monday recorded 12,781 new COVID-19 cases and 18 deaths.
According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India reported 7,293 recoveries at the rate of 98.61 per cent in the last 24 hours, with which the total number of recoveries from the infection has risen to 4,27,15,193.
Notably, the total active cases in the country stand at 79,313 at a rate of 0.18 per cent and the current positivity rate of 2.55 per cent. Cumulatively, India has conducted 85.85 crore tests so far, of which 3,88,641 were conducted in the last 24 hours.
As per the information, the country's weekly positivity rate stands at 2.67 per cent.
According to the ministry, 196.32 crore vaccine doses have been administered to the states/union territories so far under a nationwide vaccination drive, through the Government of India (free of cost channel).
The Central Government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of COVID-19 vaccination throughout the country. The nationwide COVID-19 vaccination started on January 16, 2021.
The new phase of universalization of COVID-19 vaccination commenced on June 21, 2021. The vaccination drive has been ramped up through the availability of more vaccines, advanced visibility of vaccine availability to States and UTs for enabling better planning by them and streamlining the vaccine supply chain.
As part of the nationwide vaccination drive, the Government of India has been supporting the States and UTs by providing them with COVID-19 vaccines free of cost. In the new phase of the universalization of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the Union Government will procure and supply (free of cost) 75 per cent of the vaccines being produced by the vaccine manufacturers in the country to States and UTs.
Amid the recent surge reported in COVID-19 cases across the country, the Health Ministry of India on June 9 urged States and Union Territories to not lower their guards and strictly maintain the COVID-appropriate behaviour. Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Thursday wrote a letter to States/UTs and directed them to ramp up RT-PCR testing, surveillance, clinical management, vaccination, COVID-19 protocols and take timely pre-emptive actions. Bhushan also advised the government to follow a 'five-fold strategy'. (ANI)