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Confirmed cases rise to 534,041, against 488,903 recoveries and 11,318 deaths, leaving 33,820 active cases
Pakistan on Monday recorded 1,629 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 36,607 tests—a positivity ratio of 4.45 percent.
National Health Services Parliamentary Secretary, Dr. Nausheen Hamid on Sunday announced that Pakistan’s coronavirus vaccine procurement was in its “final stages,” reiterating that China had committed to providing 500,000 doses of an as-yet-unidentified vaccine to Islamabad by Jan. 31. The health official stressed that frontline healthcare workers—of which 300,000 have already been registered—would be prioritized in the first phase, which is set to begin from the end of February. Senior citizens would be catered to in the second phase of the immunizations, she said, adding that the general public would be accommodated in the third and final phase.
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 – 534,041 (Tests: 7,680,242)
Punjab – 154,017
Sindh – 241,200
Balochistan – 18,750
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 65,532
Islamabad – 40,815
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,902
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 8,825
Deaths – 11,318
Recoveries – 488,903
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Monday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 534,041. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 23 to 11,318. At the same time, recoveries increased by 2,414 to 488,903, or 91.5 percent of total infections. There are currently 33,820 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC saying 2,218 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Monday, authorities reported 7 deaths due to the coronavirus, raising total casualties to 4,568. The province now has 154,017 confirmed cases; it reported 607 new infections after conducting 15,760 tests, a positivity ratio of 3.85 percent. There were 1,216 new recoveries recorded, leaving 138,894 fully recovered, and 10,555 active cases of the virus.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh have now climbed to 241,200; it reported 630 new infections on Monday after conducting 9,388 tests, a positivity ratio of 6.71 percent. The province reported 4 new deaths, raising toll to 3,892, while its recoveries rose by 793 to 219,481. Overall, the province now has 17,827 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
In the past 24 hours, the provincial government recorded 245 new infections after conducting 6,329 tests, a positivity ratio of 3.87 percent. Overall, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s confirmed cases have climbed to 65,532. It recorded 7 new deaths, raising toll to 1,839, while its recoveries have risen by 254 to 60,476. There are currently 3,217 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Balochistan
The province on Monday raised its confirmed cases to 18,750 with 14 new infections after conducting 279 tests, a positivity ratio of 5.02 percent. There were no deaths and 36 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 192 fatalities and 18,284 fully recovered. There are now 273 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Monday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 102 to 40,815 after conducting 4,267 tests; a positivity ratio of 2.39 percent. There were 3 deaths and 100 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 468 casualties; 38,737 recovered; and 1,610 active cases.
Gilgit-Baltistan reported 1 new case of the novel coronavirus on Monday after conducting 314 tests, a positivity ratio of 0.32 percent; it now has 4,902 confirmed cases. The region reported no deaths or recoveries, leaving 102 fatalities and 4,770 fully recovered people. There are currently 30 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases rose by 30 to 8,825 after conducting 270 tests, a positivity ratio of 11.11 percent. There were 2 deaths and 15 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 256 fatalities and 8,261 fully recovered. It now has 308 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 99,803,354 people, with over 2,139,741 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 71,797,339 patients of the 99.8 million+ infected have recovered thus far.