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Confirmed cases climb to 460,672 against 410,937 recoveries and 9,474 deaths, leaving 40,261 active cases
Pakistan on Tuesday recorded 1,704 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 34,594 tests—a positivity ratio of 4.92 percent.
Fearing a mutated strain of the novel coronavirus—discovered in the U.K.—over 40 countries, including Pakistan, have implemented movement restrictions on all travelers originating from Britain. The new strain, reportedly over 70 percent more infectious than the initial strain, has been described as being “out of control” by British health experts. The mutated strain has also raised some concerns about the efficacy of the vaccine, with the World Health Organization saying that it should work as designed.
Despite a severe second wave of COVID-19, Pakistan has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 54,519, with daily testing significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Pakistan’s testing policies only record the most symptomatic patients—a belief substantiated by a Punjab government official as the “most efficient use of resources”—while ignoring the spread among asymptomatic carriers, which studies suggest comprise the majority of infections nationwide.
Confirmed Cases, Total – 460,672 (Tests: 6,370,707)
Punjab – 132,526
Sindh – 205,484
Balochistan – 17,950
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 55,450
Islamabad – 36,416
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,831
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 8,015
Deaths – 9,474
Recoveries – 410,937
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Tuesday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 460,672. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 82 to 9,474. At the same time, recoveries increased by 1,852 to 410,937, or 89.2 percent of total infections. There are currently 40,261 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC saying 2,398 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Tuesday, authorities reported 50 deaths due to the coronavirus, raising total casualties to 3,688. The province now has 132,526 confirmed cases; it reported 593 new infections after conducting 14,062 tests, a positivity ratio of 4.22 percent. There were 112 new recoveries recorded, leaving 120,110 fully recovered, and 8,728 active cases of the virus.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh have now climbed to 205,484; it reported 644 new infections on Tuesday after conducting 10,234 tests, a positivity ratio of 6.29 percent. The province reported 19 new deaths, raising toll to 3,352, while its recoveries rose by 872 to 181,602. Overall, the province now has 20,530 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
In the past 24 hours, the provincial government has recorded 267 new infections after conducting 4,707 tests, a positivity ratio of 5.67 percent. Overall, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s confirmed cases have climbed to 55,450. It recorded 7 new deaths, raising toll to 1,553, while its recoveries have risen by 324 to 49,445. There are currently 4,452 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Balochistan
The province on Tuesday raised its confirmed cases to 17,950 with 24 new infections after conducting 225 tests, a positivity ratio of 10.67 percent. There were no deaths and 36 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 179 fatalities and 17,408 fully recovered. There are now 363 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Tuesday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 159 to 36,416 after conducting 4,663 tests; a positivity ratio of 3.41 percent. There were 2 deaths and 388 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 393 casualties; 30,761 recovered; and 5,262 active cases.
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Gilgit-Baltistan on Tuesday increased by 4 to 4,831 after conducting 402 tests, a positivity ratio of 0.99 percent. The region reported no deaths and 19 recoveries, leaving 99 fatalities and 4,636 fully recovered people. There are currently 96 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases rose by 13 to 8,015 after conducting 301 tests, a positivity ratio of 4.32 percent. There were 101 recoveries and 4 deaths in the past 24 hours, leaving 210 fatalities and 6,975 fully recovered. It now has 830 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 77,717,420 people, with over 1,709,007 reported deaths. After a devastating first wave, the world is now reeling from a second wave of the coronavirus, with many countries imposing fresh lockdowns or targeted closures in a bid to curb its spread ahead of mass distribution of vaccines. Overall, around 54,592,956 patients of the 77.7 million+ infected have recovered thus far.