Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tests COVID-19 positive 

Singh said he is experiencing mild symptoms.

He is currently under home quarantine.

"I have tested positive for Corona today with mild symptoms. I am under home quarantine. I request everyone who have recently come in my contact to isolate themselves and get tested,: Singh tweeted.

The inoculation of anti-COVID-19 booster doses for frontline workers and people aged 60 or more began in India on Monday amid the reporting of a massive 1.79 lakh infections in the last 24 hours.

As per the Union Health Ministry's daily update, 1,79,723 COVID-19 cases have been reported from across the country of 1.3 billion people in the last 24 hours.

In the same span of time, 146 people died of the virus while the health experts claim the fatality rate due to the latest COVID-19 variant, Omicron, is minimum.

The tally of Omicron cases, that have kept the health facilities on their toes, on Monday surged to 4,033 though the actual figure including the unreported ones is expected to be far higher.

Among the 27 states that have reported Omicron cases, Maharashtra, the richest Indian state, tops the list with 1,216 cases followed by Rajasthan (529) and the national capital Delhi (513).

Prior to the inoculation of anti-COVID-19 booster doses for frontline workers and senior citizens, the central government began the vaccination drive for the teens (aged 15-18) on Jan 3.