India on Monday morning recorded 25,072 coronavirus cases, pushing the country’s infection tally to 3,24,49,306 since the pandemic broke out in January last year. With 389 deaths, the toll mounted to 4,34,756.

Monday’s case tally is the lowest count in 160 days, according to the Centre. It is also 19% lower than Sunday’s count of 30,948.

So far, 3,16,80,626 people have recovered from the infection. The number of active cases has dropped to 3,33,924.

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

Other updates

  • Schools for Classes 9 to 12 reopened in Karnataka on Monday. Similarly, schools for Classes 6 to 8 in Uttar Pradesh were supposed to start. However, the state government has declared a public holiday due to the death of former Chief Minister Kalyan Singh. The schools will now begin on Tuesday.
  • The Railways has suffered losses worth Rs 36,000 crore during the coronavirus pandemic, Union minister Raosaheb Danve said at an event in Maharashtra on Sunday, reported NDTV. “Only goods trains generate revenue,” he added. “During the pandemic, these trains played an important role in carrying goods and providing relief to people.”
  • Fully vaccinated Sikh pilgrims can visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib via the Kartarpur Corridor from September, said the Pakistan government, reported The Indian Express. The Kartarpur Corridor has remained closed since March 2020. The Indian government is yet to reopen the corridor.
  • Several Bharatiya Janata Party lawmakers, including Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal, have been booked for allegedly violating Covid guidelines during the Jan Ashirwad Yatra. The police complaint was lodged by Assam Jatiya Parishad, a regional party backed by student outfits All Assam Students’ Union and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad.
  • The United Kingdom government will roll out a new nationwide antibody surveillance programme on Tuesday. Under the scheme, it will make free home antibody tests available for up to 8,000 Covid patients daily. “Our new national antibody testing will be quick and easy to take part in, and by doing so you’ll be helping strengthen our understanding of Covid-19 as we cautiously return to a more normal life,” said UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid.
  • Globally, Covid-19 has infected more than 21.18 crore people and led to over 44.30 lakh deaths since the beginning of the pandemic in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University.