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Confirmed infections reach 553,128, against 508,700 recoveries and 11,914 deaths, leaving 32,514 active cases
Pakistan on Saturday recorded 1,286 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 33,319 tests—a positivity ratio of 3.86 percent.
Health officials have said that Pakistan plans to administer the Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines for its elderly population after reports emerged that the Sinopharm vaccine being utilized for healthcare workers had not been sufficiently tested on the elderly to determine its efficacy in that age group. Both the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines are slated to reach Pakistan sometime in the next month as part of the COVAX facility.
Despite a severe second wave of COVID-19, Pakistan has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 57,531, with daily testing significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to the World Health Organization, 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 – 553,128 (Tests: 8,155,766)
Punjab – 160,162
Sindh – 250,043
Balochistan – 18,849
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 68,180
Islamabad – 41,819
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,915
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 9,160
Deaths – 11,914
Recoveries – 508,700
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Saturday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 553,128. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 28 to 11,914. At the same time, recoveries increased by 1,198 to 508,700, or 92 percent of total infections. There are currently 32,514 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC saying 1,908 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Saturday, authorities reported 14 deaths due to the coronavirus, raising total casualties to 4,854. The province now has 160,162 confirmed cases; it reported 457 new infections after conducting 12,243 tests, a positivity ratio of 3.73 percent. There were 554 new recoveries recorded, leaving 146,235 fully recovered, and 9,073 active cases of the virus.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh have now climbed to 250,043; it reported 545 new infections on Saturday after conducting 10,019 tests, a positivity ratio of 5.44 percent. The province reported 7 new deaths, raising toll to 4,066, while its recoveries rose by 338 to 226,752. Overall, the province now has 19,225 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
In the past 24 hours, the provincial government recorded 176 new infections after conducting 6,084 tests, a positivity ratio of 2.89 percent. Overall, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s confirmed cases have climbed to 68,180. It recorded 7 new deaths, raising toll to 1,948, while its recoveries have risen by 189 to 63,799. There are currently 2,433 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Balochistan
The province on Saturday raised its confirmed cases to 18,849 with 5 new infections after conducting 566 tests, a positivity ratio of 0.88 percent. There were no deaths and 11 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 196 fatalities and 18,558 fully recovered. There are now 95 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Saturday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 85 to 41,819 after conducting 3,662 tests; a positivity ratio of 2.32 percent. There were no deaths and 87 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 478 casualties; 40,074 recovered; and 1,267 active cases.
Gilgit-Baltistan reported 2 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Saturday after conducting 350 tests, a positivity ratio of 0.57 percent; it now has 4,915 confirmed cases. The region reported no deaths or recoveries, leaving 102 fatalities and 4,794 fully recovered people. There are currently 19 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases rose by 16 to 9,160 after conducting 395 tests, a positivity ratio of 4.05 percent. There were no deaths and 19 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 270 fatalities and 8,488 fully recovered. It now has 402 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 105,917,456 people, with over 2,309,058 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 77,536,424 patients of the 105.9 million+ infected have recovered thus far.