Pakistan has recorded the highest number of deaths in a single day during the current year from the coronavirus infection, as 114 people died of Covid-19 during the last 24 hours, stated the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Sunday.
Out of the total deaths, 104 patients died in hospitals, whereas the remainder of deaths occurred outside of hospitals. Moreover, 43 of the patients who succumbed to the virus on Saturday were on ventilators. The NCOC said that the majority of deaths were reported in Punjab, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The country has witnessed an uptick in the coronavirus fatality count, with 665 deaths reported in one week.
The country also recorded a total of 5,050 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, making it the fourth straight day with over 5,000 cases a day. Currently, the total number of active Covid-19 cases across the country is 73,875. A total of 4,920 patients were admitted across Pakistan in about 630 hospitals with Covid-19 facilities.
Out of 518 ventilators occupied across the country, the highest number of ventilators were occupied in Gujranwala at 88 percent occupancy, followed by Multan at 81 percent, Lahore at 79 percent and Islamabad at 57 percent. The NCOC reported that the highest number of oxygen-bed occupancy in the country was again in Gujranwala at 85 percent, followed by Peshawar at 72 percent, Gujrat at 71 percent and Swat at 63 percent.
About 46,066 Covid-19 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours out of which 8,685 were conducted in Sindh, 19,016 in Punjab, 8,414 in KP, 7,223 in Islamabad, 1,160 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), 829 in Balochistan and 739 in Gilgit Baltistan (GB).
About 631,700 people have so far recovered from the deadly virus across the country. The NCOC also reported that out of a total of 721,018 cases detected so far, 268,750 were detected in Sindh, 248,438 in Punjab, 98,301 in KP, 65,700 in Islamabad, 20,241 in Balochistan, 14,461 in AJK, and 5,127 in GB.
Moreover, out of a total 15,443 deaths reported in Pakistan so far, there have been about 4,529 deaths in Sindh, 6,972 in Punjab, 2,618 in KP, 607 in Islamabad, and 215 in Balochistan
Authorities introduced “smart lockdowns” in Covid-19 hotspots last month to curb the third wave of pandemic . Some of the measures included restrictions on public gatherings and transport and stricter enforcement of health guidelines.
On Thursday last, Planning Minister Asad Umar, who also heads the NCOC, said that the government was planning to begin Covid-19 vaccine registrations for all citizens after the Eid Al-Fitr holiday mid-May.
Starting February, Pakistan began vaccinating frontline health care workers and citizens over the age of 60 free of charge using over one million Sinopharm doses donated by China. It has since purchased more doses of the Sinopharm and Cansino Biologics Covid-19 vaccines from China. Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine has also been privately imported by pharmaceutical companies.
The Punjab health department on Sunday proposed complete lockdown for two weeks in seven districts of the province to curb the rising number of coronavirus cases.
The decision was taken in a meeting of the Punjab health department chaired by its minister Dr Yasmin Rashid to review Covid-19 situation. The meeting recommended imposing a complete lockdown for two weeks in seven districts of Punjab. The approval for the lockdown will be sought in the meeting of the Punjab cabinet meeting, sources said.
The Punjab government has issued special SOPs and guidelines for mosques to be implemented during Ramazan. As per new SOPs, carpet or rugs will not be spread/laid in Mosques or Imambargahs, prayers will be offered on the bare floors.
Those older than 60 years, adolescent children and those suffering from flu, cough, etc, should not come to mosques or imambargahs.
It is obligatory that a mask is worn before coming to mosque or imambargah and not to shake hands or hug anyone in the mosque.
Rows of the praying individuals should be aligned so that there is a distance of 6 feet between individuals. If people wish to bring their own prayer mats from home, they can do so. Taraweeh will be observed within the boundaries of the mosque, according to teh guidelines.