India saw a single day rise of 2,628 new coronavirus infections, taking the infection tally to 4,31,44,820, while the active cases have increased to 15,414, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Thursday.
The COVID-19 death toll climbed to 5,24,525 with 18 more fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprised 0.04 %  of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.75 % the health ministry said.

An increase of 443 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.58 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was 0.51 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,26,04,881, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.22 %.

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive has exceeded 192.82 crore.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23.

The 18 fatalities include 13 from Kerala, four from Delhi and one from Rajasthan, Union health ministry said.

A total of 5,24,525 deaths have been reported so far in the country, including 1,47,857 from Maharashtra, 69,643 from Kerala, 40,106 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,207 from Delhi, 23,519 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,203 from West Bengal.

Union health ministry stressed that more than 70 % of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.

“Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research,” the ministry said on its website, adding that the state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.

Saying that he had resigned from the Congress last week, Kapil Sibal on Wednesday filed his nomination for the Rajya Sabha as an Independent candidate from Uttar Pradesh supported by the Samajwadi Party.

Kapil Sibal, whose exit from the Congress is another jolt for the electorally battered party, went to the Uttar Pradesh assembly premises to file his papers with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, Ram Gopal Yadav and other senior leaders.

A prominent member of the G23, which had sought an organisational overhaul in the Congress, Sibal’s tenure as Congress’ Rajya Sabha MP ends in July,

“I have filed the nomination as an Independent candidate. I thank Akhileshji for supporting me,” Sibal told reporters in Lucknow.

“I resigned from the Congress on May 16 and am no longer a senior Congress leader,” he said.

Sibal, who has been vocal in his criticism of the Congress leadership, had called for a non-Gandhi as the new party chief.

“We are all constrained by the fact that we are members of parties and have to abide by the discipline of that party but it is important to have an independent voice,” the former Union minister told reporters.

“We want to make a coalition and oppose the Modi government. We want to create an atmosphere in which we can oppose the BJP. I will personally work towards that,” he said.

Referring to the 2024 elections, he said there should be an atmosphere where the shortcomings of the Modi government can reach people.

Yadav said Sibal is being supported by the Samajwadi Party.

“Kapil Sibal is a senior leader and a known lawyer. He had been in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and put his point across well everywhere. I hope he will put his views on big questions of rising inflation and China , the SP president, who is also leader of opposition, added.

Sibal’s resignation comes close on the heels of Sunil Jakhar and Hardik Patel resigning from the Congress, which recently held a ‘Chintan Shivir’ in Udaipur.

Elections for 11 Rajya Sabha seats of Uttar Pradesh are underway.

There had been speculation that the SP could field Sibal as a Rajya Sabha candidate. He was the lawyer who secured senior SP leader Azam Khan’s bail. Khan had been in Sitapur jail for over 27 months in various cases lodged against him in Rampur.

The SP has a strength of 111 in the 403-member assembly and can send three members to the Upper House of Parliament. The BJP with 255 members can send eight.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the mass Yoga demonstration event in Mysuru on June 21 on the International Day of Yoga.

The programme is being held in the physical mode after a gap of two years due to the coronavirus pandemic.

As the country is celebrating the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, the Day will be observed at 75 iconic locations across the country and will focus on branding India on a global scale, Ayush Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said.

A series of mega events are being planned in the run up to Day with a 25-day countdown to observed in Hyderabad on May 27, wherein around 10,000 Yoga enthusiasts will participate in the Yoga demonstration.

The earlier mega countdown events were organised at Shivdol (50-day countdown on May 2) and at the Red Fort here (75-day countdown on April 7).

Apart from the main event at Mysuru, another attraction on June 21 this year will be the Guardian Ring — a relay Yoga streaming event — which will capture and weave together digital feed of International Day of Yoga programmes organised by Indian Missions abroad.

The proposed plan is to initiate the streaming from Japan, the land of the rising sun, at 6 am local time, and it will culminate in New Zealand, Sonowal stated. Around 70 countries are likely to participate in the relay event.

Union ministers, film and sports personalities, Yoga experts and enthusiasts will be among those who will attend the event.