Daily Times

The national tally of total active Covid-19 cases was recorded at 66,994 as 5,329 more people tested positive for the deadly virus Thursday, the highest number of single day cases since June last year.

Ninety-eight patients died on Thursday, 90 of whom were under treatment in hospitals and eight in their respective quarantines or homes, according to the latest update issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC). Most of the deaths occurred in Punjab, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Out of the total 98 deaths, 31 of the deceased died on ventilators during their treatment. The maximum ventilators were occupied in four major areas including Multan 81 percent, Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) 58 percent, Gujranwala 84 percent and Lahore 75 percent. The maximum oxygen beds were occupied in four major areas of Swat 63 percent, Gujranwala 85 percent, Peshawar 83 percent and Gujrat 73 percent. Around 467 ventilators were occupied elsewhere in the country while no Covid-affected person was on ventilator in Gilgit Baltistan (GB) and Balochistan.

Some 49,816 tests were conducted across the country on Wednesday, including 9,411 in Sindh, 21,325 in Punjab, 8,292 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 8,433 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 816 in Balochistan, 474 in GB, and 1,065 in AJK. Around 623,399 people have recovered from the disease so far across Pakistan making it a significant count with over 90 percent recovery ratio of the affected patients.

Since the pandemic outbreak, a total of 705,517 cases were detected that also include the perished, recovered and under treatment COVID-19 patients so far, including AJK 13,873, Balochistan 19,999, GB 5,070, ICT 63,499, KP 94,880, Punjab 240,584 and Sindh 267,612. About 15,124 deaths were recorded in country since the eruption of the contagion.

Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar has said that the government plans to open registration for Covid-19 vaccination for all citizens after Eid. He said this while speaking to select senior journalists on Thursday.

The announcement comes a day after over 100 deaths were reported for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, taking the overall tally to 15,000 mortalities.

Umar termed the next five to six weeks “critical” for the ongoing third wave of the virus in Pakistan. He said so far 14,000 people had received vaccination through the private sector, while 1.1 million were inoculated as part of the government campaign. The minister said China was Pakistan’s “primary source” for vaccination for now, adding that the Cansino Covid-19 vaccine will also be available in the country after Eid. “We will be able to vaccinate more than 125,000 people per day after Eid,” Umar told media representatives.

He noted with concern that the current number of critical care patients in the country was higher than during the first coronavirus wave. “Strict enforcement of SOPs (standard operating procedures) can bring down the rising rate of infection,” he stressed.

Earlier this week, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) said it has decided to administer Covid-19 vaccines to citizens aged 80 years and above in their homes.

Meanwhile, a study conducted by American newswire Bloomberg showed that it would take a decade for Pakistan to inoculate 75pc of its population despite the fact that over one million people have already been vaccinated against the virus.