File photo. Courtesy PID
In past 24 hours, 548 new infections, 256 recoveries and 5 deaths were recorded
Pakistan on Friday recorded 548 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 29,534 tests—a positivity ratio of 1.85 percent.
As part of the government’s guidelines for reopening educational institutions from next week, the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) has directed random testing of students and staff to curb the spread of the disease. The Punjab health department has said that sample testing will be conducted in 986 high-risk educational institutes, while samples would be taken from 383 education institutes after every 15 days.
Pakistan’s welcome decline in daily infections and deaths, meanwhile, has encountered some trepidation from observers who warn that the country has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 73,680 and is currently testing significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to the World Health Organization, 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. Medical experts have also warned that the government’s decision to end nearly all movement restrictions at once risks a second wave of the virus.
Confirmed Cases, Total – 300,371 (Tests: 2,879,655)
Punjab – 97,533
Sindh – 131,404
Balochistan – 13,282
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 36,823
Islamabad – 15,832
Gilgit-Baltistan – 3,131
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 2,366
Deaths – 6,370
Recoveries – 288,206
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Friday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 300,371. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 5 to 6,370. At the same time, recoveries increased by 256 to 288,206, or 96 percent of total infections. There are currently 5,795 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC reporting 535 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Friday, authorities reported 1 new death due to COVID-19, raising fatalities to 2,214. The province conducted 9,144 tests, raising confirmed cases to 97,533 with 72 new infections. Meanwhile, its recoveries have increased by 14 to 94,258. There are now 1,061 active cases of the virus in the province.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh on Friday rose by 289 to 131,404 against 13,049 tests. Additionally, the province’s death toll climbed by 3 to 2,439, while its recoveries rose by 101 to 126,704. Overall, the province now has 2,261 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
The provincial government on Friday reported no new deaths, sustaining toll at 1,256. In the past 24 hours, its recoveries rose by 71 to 34,774, while its confirmed cases have increased by 68 to 36,823. The province conducted 2,914 tests on Thursday and currently has 793 active cases of coronavirus.
Balochistan
For the second day in a row, the government—without any explanation—reduced the confirmed infections in the province. On Thursday, the government had reported 120 new infections; this has been retroactively reduced to 70 with 55 infections shifted to Friday. Despite this increase of 5 infections, the government’s official portal is showing no increase in confirmed cases of the province.
The province conducted 379 tests on Thursday, sustaining confirmed cases at 13,321. There were no new deaths and 52 recoveries in the past 24 hours, sustaining fatalities at 145 and raising recoveries to 12,251. There are now 886 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Friday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 28 to 15,832 after conducting 3,372 tests. There was 1 new death and 26 recoveries in the past 24 hours, raising casualties to 178 and recoveries to 15,270, leaving 384 active cases.
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Gilgit-Baltistan dropped by 6—a miraculous occurrence—on Friday to 3,131 after conducting 318 tests. The region reported no new deaths, sustaining toll at 73, while its recoveries decreased by 13 to 2,744, leaving 314 active cases.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases have increased by 10 to 2,366 after conducting 358 tests. There were no new deaths and 5 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 65 fatalities and 2,205 fully recovered. It now has 96 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 28,328,087 people, with over 913,918 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 there are now signs of easements to help shuttered economies recover. Overall, around 20,342,702 patients of the 28.3 million+ infected have recovered thus far.