Former IMA President, Padma Shri awardee, and eminent cardiologist Dr. K K Aggarwal succumbed to COVID-19, a statement posted on his Twitter handle said.
Dr. Aggarwal, 62, who was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and was on ventilator support since last week, died at 11.30 pm on Monday after a lengthy battle with COVID-19, according to the statement.
The former Indian Medical Association (IMA) president Dr. KK Aggarwal is survived by his wife Dr. Veena Aggarwal, son Nilesh, and daughter Naina.
Aggarwal was one of the first frontline workers to take the first dose of the anti-COVID vaccine in January, which he revealed during a live video broadcast from his car. The broadcast, however, was the subject of gossip because it was interrupted by his wife's call and their personal conversation was heard by the general public.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal described his death as a "setback for the whole nation".
"Passing away of Dr. KK Aggarwal is a setback for the whole nation. He acted all his life for the health rights of common people especially poor, deprived n marginalized. A great human being. RIP! (sic)," he wrote on Twitter.
A statement posted in the early hours of Tuesday on Aggarwal's Twitter handle said he wanted his life to be celebrated and not mourned.
"Even during the pandemic, he made constant efforts to educate the masses and was able to reach out to 100 million people through numerous videos and educational programmes and saved countless lives," the statement read.
The IMA said his demise was "an unexpected and tragic loss".
"Dr. K. K. Aggarwal was a true legend was an iconic figure in mass education and awareness. He served millions of lives and his services proved a guiding torch to all of us even during the pandemic… IMA is poorer by the loss," it said in a tweet.
