A 30-year-old journalist, working with India Today, succumbed to coronavirus on Monday. Neelanshu Shukla, a Lucknow correspondent, had tested positive for COVID-19 on August 20 and was asymptomatic.
The news of the journalist's death was shared by Rahul Kanwal, News Director at India Today. Taking to Twitter, Rahul Kanwal wrote: "Shattered with the demise of our dear colleague and India Today’s Lucknow correspondent @neelanshu512. A terrible bout of Covid claimed the life of this intrepid 30 year old reporter. The entire team is plagued with grief. May God give strength to his family and friends. Om Shanti."
Soon after the news broke, condolences started pouring from all quarters. One user wrote, "Neelanshu Shukla a young journalist, often sent out his spunky news stories and joined me in my morning bulletins on India Today, with his live reports- lost his battle to COVID-19. An absolute shock this news has been. He was all of 30! The cases are spiralling.Stay safe everyone."
Even politicians expressed their grief. Taking to Facebok, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra wrote in Hindi: "A very sad news. Neelanshu Shukla, a young journalist from Lucknow, is no more. He was battling COVID-19 since many days." She also urged the Uttar Pradesh government to provide insurance cover to journalists, asserting that scribes are performing the important duty of providing information amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddique said, "Extremely saddened to hear about the passing away of a young journalist Neelanshu Shukla! He was only 28 and recently tested covid positive. My sincere condolences & prayers for his family and loved ones."
Here's what others had to say:
On August 20, Neelanshu Shukla had tweeted saying that he had tested positive for COVID-19. "Unfortunately i have tested positive positive for COVID-19. I am asymptomatic and have been advised home isolation. Those who came in contact with me kindly get tested and follow all the necessary guidelines."
Meanwhile, with 69,921 people testing positive for coronavirus infection, India's COVID-19 tally mounted to 36,91,166, while recoveries surged to 28,39,882 on Tuesday pushing the recovery rate to 76.94 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry data.
