Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is making steady progress with his pneumonic attack having almost subsided, doctors attending on him at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences said on Thursday.

Vajpayee, who was admitted to the hospital following complaints of chest infection, has shown considerable improvement and his dependence on ventilator has been further reduced.

"There is not much change from last night. The process of withdrawing ventilatory support may take some more time. Pneumonia is almost clear and other parameters are all right" Dr Sampath Kumar, chief of cardio-thorasic vascular sciences department at the AIIMS, told PTI.

The AIIMS in a statement on Thursday said the 84-year-old leader was still on mechanical ventilator.

"He is still in the Intensive Care Unit, his condition is stable and he is making steady progress," Medical Suprintendent D K Sharma said.

Doctors attending on him found that the condition of his lungs has significantly improved and the levels of oxygenation have gone up, which is a positive sign.

Basic parameters like heart, kidney, liver and blood pressure were normal, Kumar added.