LIVE news updates: India records 13,216 coronavirus cases, 23 fatalities

Live news updates: India’s COVID-19 tally increased to 43,283,793 on Saturday as 13,216 more people tested positive for the viral disease and the active caseload climbed to 68,108, according to Union health ministry data. This is the first time in 113 days that India has recorded over 13,000 cases. The death toll increased to 524,840 with 23 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. The active cases comprise 0.16 per cent of the total infections. An increase of 5,045 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The European Commission recommended that Ukraine be granted candidate status in a symbolic step on the long path to become members of the European Union, according to two people familiar with the matter. The EU’s executive arm approved it Friday with conditions that Kyiv will have to meet in the future on the rule of law, justice and anti-corruption, the people said.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met visiting British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday to discuss defense and security issues, the presidential press service said. Zelenskyy and Johnson discussed in detail the current situation on the frontline in the east and the south of Ukraine as well as the supplies of weapons.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting the famous pilgrimage site of Pavagadh in Panchmahal district on Saturday, where he will unfurl the flag after performing pooja. A press release by the Gujarat information department stated, “After the ascent of Pavagadh in the fifteenth century, the peak of the temple was dilapidated for the last five centuries. The summit has now been redesigned with a new look.”