Courtesy PID
Confirmed cases rise to 337,573 against 316,060 recoveries and 6,867 deaths, leaving 14,646 active cases
Pakistan on Wednesday reported 1,313 infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 26,565 tests—a positivity ratio of 4.94 percent.
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday reiterated his longstanding view that Pakistan cannot afford another lockdown and urged citizens to wear face masks in public to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus and protect lives and livelihoods. He told a federal cabinet meeting that the provincial governments should implement more “smart” lockdowns and improve their testing and tracking to reduce the spread.
Pakistan’s health authorities have been sounding the alarm about a second wave of the virus for several weeks now. Daily infections and deaths are once more on the rise, raising fears that disease is making a comeback as the public becomes more apathetic toward social distancing measures. Meanwhile, the country has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 73,472 and is currently testing significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to WHO, Pakistan’s testing policies likely only record the most symptomatic patients while ignoring the spread among asymptomatic carriers, which recent studies have suggested comprise the majority of infections in the country.
Confirmed Cases, Total – 337,573 (Tests: 4,541,392)
Punjab – 105,197
Sindh – 147,295
Balochistan – 16,000
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 39,889
Islamabad – 20,471
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,306
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 4,415
Deaths – 6,867
Recoveries – 316,060
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Wednesday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 337,573. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 18 to 6,867. At the same time, recoveries increased by 614 to 316,060, or 93.6 percent of total infections. There are currently 14,646 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC reporting 747 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Wednesday, authorities reported 8 new deaths due to COVID-19, raising fatalities to 2,380. The province raised its confirmed cases to 105,197 with 303 new infections after conducting 10,644 tests. Meanwhile, its recoveries have increased by 17 to 97,515. There are now 5,302 active cases of the virus in the province.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh on Wednesday rose by 521 to 147,295 after conducting 7,880 tests. The province reported 6 new deaths, raising toll to 2,639, while its recoveries rose by 302 to 139,276. Overall, the province now has 5,380 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
The provincial government on Wednesday reported 1 death, raising toll to 1,281. In the past 24 hours, its recoveries rose by 113 to 37,804 while its confirmed cases have increased by 140 to 39,889 after conducting 3,599 tests. The province currently has 804 active cases of coronavirus.
Balochistan
The province on Wednesday raised its confirmed cases to 16,000 with 23 new infections after conducting 540 tests. There were no new deaths and 28 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 152 fatalities and 15,619 recoveries. There are now 229 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Wednesday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 228 to 20,471 after conducting 2,958 tests. There were 2 new deaths and 117 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 224 casualties; 18,378 recoveries; and 1,869 active cases.
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Gilgit-Baltistan on Wednesday increased by 13 to 4,306 after conducting 402 tests. The region reported no new deaths and 23 recoveries, leaving 92 fatalities and 4,040 recoveries. There are currently 174 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, 542 tests were conducted, raising confirmed cases by 85 to 4,415. There were 14 recoveries and 1 death in the past 24 hours, leaving 99 fatalities and 3,428 fully recovered. It now has 888 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 47,853,633 people, with over 1,220,534 reported deaths. Governments across the word halted flights, locked down towns and cities and urged people to stay at home at the peak of the virus’s spread, but have since eased restrictions to help shuttered economies rebound. With a second wave now emerging, countries with new spikes have started to re-impose movement restrictions. Overall, around 34,357,190 patients of the 47.8 million+ infected have recovered thus far.