India registers 20,035 new Covid-19 cases; recoveries inch closer to 9.9 million

India’s tally of cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) rose to 10,286,709 on the first day of the new year, as the country recorded 20,035 new infections in the preceding 24 hours, the Union health ministry’s dashboard showed on Friday. The country’s latest spike in Covid-19 cases is in continuation with the recent trend of low new daily infections, as against over 90,000 each day in September.