Union Minister Pralhad Joshi tests positive for COVID-19, informs he is asymptomatic

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi has tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease or COVID-19, he informed in a tweet Friday evening. Joshi said he is asymptomatic and as per the doctor's advise is in home quarantine.

Several members of the Union Cabinet such as Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Shripad Naik, Dharmendra Pradhan, Kailash Choudhary, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Gajendra Shekhawat, and Suresh Angadi were diagnosed with COVID-19. However, in a shocking development on September 23, Angadi passed away at AIIMS in the national capital.

Additionally, leading politicians and constitutional functionaries such as Chief Ministers of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and deputy CM of Haryana and Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. In mandatory tests carried out before the beginning of the Monsoon session of Parliament, it was revealed that at least 25 MPs — 17 from Lok Sabha and eight from Rajya Sabha have contracted the virus.

READ | PM Modi To Launch 'Jan Andolan' For COVID-19 Awareness As India Heads To Festive Season

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PM's new push for COVID awareness

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch a COVID-19 public awareness campaign on October 8 in view of the upcoming festivals and winter season even as coronavirus cases continue to mount while the government pushes to open up a bruising economy.

The 'Jan Andolan for COVID-19 Appropriate Behaviour' will be launched with the aim to encourage people’s participation (Jan Andolan) in disease prevention. It endeavours to be a low-cost high-intensity campaign with the key messages of 'Wear Mask, Follow Physical Distancing, Maintain Hand Hygiene', the PMO said in a statement.

Coronavirus outbreak

PM Modi's latest push to instil a sense of responsibility among citizens comes as India's COVID-19 tally crossed 67-lakh mark with a spike of 72,049 new cases and 986 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, according to latest Union Health Ministry data. The total number of detected cases stands at 67,57,132 including 9,07,883 active noes. Thus far, 57,44,694 patients have recovered while 1,04,555 have succumbed to the respiratory illness. 

Since the imposition of a strict lockdown in late March, PM Modi has repeatedly appealed Indians to passionately observe disease prevention norms like staying home, avoiding public gathering, wearing mask outdoors, social distancing and regularly washing hands. Although, after nearly seven months of the pandemic's arrival in the country, cases have skyrocketed in recent months as fatigue over such norms and a gradual opening of the economy has made people complacent, a worry raised by the government and experts warning of new infections overwhelming the healthcare system.

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READ | Health Ministry Issues Guidelines To Prevent Spread Of COVID-19 During Festive Season