The head of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) — the apex body leading Pakistan’s fight against COVID-19 — Asad Umar, on Sunday, urged the nation to reach out to all people aged 50 and above and encourage them to get vaccinated. “Pakistan has [27 million] people who are 50 years or older. This age group is most vulnerable to serious health effects of COVID,” he wrote. Umar said that so far, 5.6 million people, or 20.6% of the people of this age group have gotten at least one dose of the vaccine. “Please encourage all in this age group to vaccinate as soon as possible,” he urged. Pakistan has 2 crore 72 lakh people who are 50 years or older. This age group is most vulnerable to serious health effect of covid. So far 56 lakh or 20.6% of these have gotten at least 1 dose of vaccine. Please encourage all in this age group to vaccinate as soon as possible. — Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) July 11, 2021 22 travellers test positive after arrival from Afghanistan Meanwhile, 22 people to have arrived from Afghanistan tested positive for the virus in Karachi. They include a woman and four children. The Sindh health department said that they have all been sent to the quarantine facility in Dumba Goth. Pakistan’s overall coronavirus situation Pakistan recorded the highest coronavirus positivity ratio at 4.09% in the last 24 hours since May 30, which was at 4.05%, according to the NCOC. NCOC said that 1,980 coronavirus cases were detected from 48,382 tests conducted across the country in the last 24 hours. Twenty-seven deaths occurred in this period, with the most recorded in Sindh followed by Khyber Pakhtunkwa. Out of the 27 people who lost their lives, 16 died on ventilators. The country has recorded a total of 973,284 cases, 22,582 deaths, and 913,203 recoveries, the NCOC said, adding that there are currently 37,499 active cases. According to a province-wise breakdown, Sindh’s total cases stand at 346,360, Punjab’s at 348,085, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s at 139,313, the Islamabad Capital Territory’s at 83,647, Balochistan’s at 27,961, Gilgit-Baltista’s at 6,851, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s at 21,067.