Coronavirus third wave has started to engulf India with the country reporting more than 90,000 cases yesterday. The Omicron variant of Covid-19 has also infected a large number of politicians and government officials at the central and state levels.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot tested positive Thursday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tested positive Tuesday, and a few of Union ministers tested positive this week, including Minister for Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey, who was hospitalized Monday, and Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar, who tested positive Thursday.
Since he had attended an event at the Shaurya Officer's Institute in New Delhi a day before, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai tested positive for Covid on Thursday, raising fears about the potential transmission of infection amongst Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) members.
As per a report in The Print, Several senior federal workers, including Principal Secretary to Prime Minister P.K. Mishra, have tested positive for the virus. Many personnel in the Ministry of Education have been sacked by Covid, including additional secretary Rakesh Ranjan, three joint secretaries, and more than a half-dozen junior officials.
This evening I got myself tested for Covid and was found positive. My symptoms are very light and there is no other problem. All those who came into contact with me today, I request them to isolate themselves and undergo Covid-Test.
— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) January 6, 2022
State government administrators also affected
The ongoing Covid wave has impacted politicians and government officials in various states and union territories, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. B.C. Nagesh, the Karnataka Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday.
Gujarat Minister of State Jitubhai Chaudhari declared on Wednesday that he had got the illness. In Gujarat, at least four senior IAS officers, including Manoj Aggarwal, the additional chief secretary for health, are Covid positive.
Bengal has also been severely impacted, with Trinamool Congress leader Babul Supriyo and former sports minister and cricketer Laxmi Ratan Shukla also testing positive. Aroop Biswas, the minister of electricity and sports, was admitted to the hospital on Saturday and released on Tuesday.
