File photo
Confirmed infections climb to 432,327 against 379,092 recoveries and 8,653 deaths, leaving 44,582 active cases
Pakistan on Friday reported 3,047 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 42,596 tests—a positivity ratio of 7.15 percent.
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday warned that around 40 percent of the country’s hospital beds were now occupied and urged the public to wear masks and strictly adopt preventative measures to curb the spread of the pandemic. In a direct appeal to the opposition, he advised them to delay their rallies, claiming “the government is not affected in any way by these public gatherings.”
Pakistan is now in the midst of a second wave of the coronavirus, but has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 75,307, with daily testing still significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Pakistan’s testing policies likely only record the most symptomatic patients while ignoring the spread among asymptomatic carriers, which studies suggest comprise the majority of infections nationwide.
Confirmed Cases, Total – 432,327 (Tests: 5,948,742)
Punjab – 125,897
Sindh – 191,246
Balochistan – 17,650
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 51,172
Islamabad – 34,014
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,770
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 7,578
Deaths – 8,653
Recoveries – 379,092
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Friday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 432,327. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 50 to 8,653. At the same time, recoveries increased by 4,791 to 379,092, or 87.7 percent of total infections. There are currently 44,582 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the National Command and Operation Center saying 2,538 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Friday, authorities reported 19 deaths due to the coronavirus, raising total casualties to 3,284. The province now has 125,897 confirmed cases; it reported 647 new infections after conducting 16,645 tests, a positivity ratio of 3.89 percent. There were 2,807 new recoveries recorded, leaving 114,647 fully recovered, and 7,966 active cases of the virus.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh have now climbed to 191,246; it reported 1,559 new infections on Friday after conducting 12,703 tests, a positivity ratio of 12.27 percent. The province reported 10 new deaths, raising toll to 3,109, while its recoveries rose by 1,112 to 164,604. Overall, the province now has 23,533 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
In the past 24 hours, the provincial government has recorded 410 new infections after conducting 5,063 tests, a positivity ratio of 8.09 percent. Overall, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s confirmed cases have climbed to 51,172. It recorded 11 new deaths, raising toll to 1,450, while its recoveries have risen by 496 to 45,129. There are currently 4,593 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Balochistan
The province on Friday raised its confirmed cases to 17,650 with 46 new infections after conducting 358 tests, a positivity ratio of 12.85 percent. There were 2 deaths and 50 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 173 fatalities and 16,960 fully recovered. There are now 517 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Friday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 319 to 34,014 after conducting 6,629 tests; a positivity ratio of 4.81 percent. There were 5 deaths and 202 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 350 casualties; 27,205 recovered; and 6,456 active cases.
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Gilgit-Baltistan on Friday increased by 5 to 4,770 after conducting 410 tests, a positivity ratio of 1.22 percent. The region reported no deaths and 28 recoveries, leaving 98 fatalities and 4,539 fully recovered people. There are currently 133 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases rose by 61 to 7,578 after conducting 788 tests, a positivity ratio of 7.74 percent. There were 96 recoveries and 3 deaths in the past 24 hours, leaving 186 fatalities and 6,008 fully recovered. It now has 1,384 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 70,720,317 people, with over 1,588,437 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 the upcoming winter holidays. Overall, around 49,148,338 patients of the 70.7 million+ infected have recovered thus far.