Daily Times

As many as 670 more people tested positive for the novel coronavirus during the past 24 hours across the country, taking the number of confirmed cases to 288,995.

Six people lost their lives due to coronavirus-related complications. According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the death toll from the disease in the country has increased to 6,173. The number of active coronavirus cases has dropped to 16,248 as 266,301 patients have recovered so far.

As many as 24,022 more samples were tested over the previous 24 hours, taking the total number of tests conducted across the country so far to more than 2.2 million. A total of 1,308 Covid-19 patients are under treatment in various hospitals across the country, 141 of whom are struggling for their lives on ventilators.

Out of total reported cases, 126,182 cases have been detected in Sindh, 95,391 in Punjab, 35,153 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 12,224 in Balochistan, 15,378 in Islamabad, 2,181 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and 2,486 in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).

It is to be mentioned here that there was no death reported from Covid-19 in Punjab on Friday, giving credence to the views of some health experts who believe the coronavirus is no more lethal and that the pandemic is going to be over in the region. Since the first death from the Covid-19 was reported back in mid-March, it was the second time during the pandemic that no patient succumbed to the disease in a single day in Punjab. Earlier, Punjab had marked no Covid-19 death on July 28, prompting many health experts to think that the virus has lost its ‘deadly kick’.

On Sunday, Sindh reported 278 coronavirus cases and five deaths during the last 24 hours, according to Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah. In a statement, he said that 9,044 tests were conducted during this period. With the new cases, the provincial total has risen to 126,182 while the death toll is 2,322.

Punjab reported 188 new Covid-19 cases, according to the government’s coronavirus portal, taking the provincial total to 95,391. It has also reported two additional fatalities from the virus, taking the death toll to 2,182. According to the portal, 86,441 people have recovered in the province so far.

Islamabad, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir have collectively recorded 68 new coronavirus cases. The breakdown is as follows: Islamabad 32 cases, GB 34 cases, AJK two cases.

A further 677 people recovered from Covid-19 in Pakistan, according to the government’s database on coronavirus. This has taken the total number of recoveries to 266,301.

Gilgit Baltistan’s focal person for coronavirus Dr Shah Zaman has warned that the coronavirus situation in the region can get ‘out of control’ if the Centre and provinces do not cooperate on enforcing standard operating procedures (SOPs) related to tourism. He said at least 150 cars carrying tourists were entering in the region daily, adding that 95 per cent of the tourists did not have their lab reports with them. “Because of this, we have started random testing at entry points. Associations of hotel owners are interfering and raising objections to this which is making it difficult to control the spread of corona. “The health department has very limited resources to combat corona. If this irresponsible practice continues, it can create a concerning situation,” he said. He further said that an “emergency meeting” had been called tomorrow to decide on an “effective policy”.

He said that 20 tourists had been put under quarantine so far after they showed symptoms of the virus while others could not be traced because they had given ‘wrong contact information’.