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Confirmed infections reach 654,591, against 595,929 recoveries and 14,215 deaths, leaving 44,447 active cases
Pakistan on Sunday reported 4,767 new infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 45,656 tests—a positivity ratio of 10.44 percent.
Planning Minister Asad Umar, who also heads the National Command and Operation Center, on Saturday warned that if the prevailing situation did not improve, the trajectory of the ongoing third wave of the pandemic was on track to surpass the peak of the first wave within this week. In a press conference after an “emergency” meeting of the NCOC to review spiking positivity rates, he said the number of patients requiring critical care had reached its peak of around 3,200 last year, compared to the 3,000 it stands at now. “People don’t seem to realize how severe this wave of the pandemic is,” he said, urging the public to adopt all preventative measures.
Despite passing through two waves of COVID-19, Pakistan has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 61,177, 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 – 654,591 (Tests: 10,066,726)
Punjab – 212,918
Sindh – 264,607
Balochistan – 19,497
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 84,609
Islamabad – 55,594
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,999
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 12,367
Deaths – 14,215
Recoveries – 595,929
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Sunday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 654,591. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 57 to 14,215. At the same time, recoveries increased by 2,647 to 595,929, or 91 percent of total infections. There are currently 44,447 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC saying 3,043 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Sunday, authorities reported 39 deaths due to the coronavirus, raising total casualties to 6,229. The province now has 212,918 confirmed cases; it reported 2,823 new infections after conducting 19,377 tests, a positivity ratio of 14.57 percent. There were 1,701 new recoveries recorded, leaving 184,297 fully recovered, and 22,392 active cases of the virus.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh have now climbed to 264,607; it reported 252 new infections on Sunday after conducting 9,424 tests, a positivity ratio of 2.67 percent. The province reported 4 new deaths, raising toll to 4,491, while its recoveries rose by 160 to 255,671. Overall, the province now has 4,445 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
In the past 24 hours, the provincial government recorded 979 new infections after conducting 8,160 tests, a positivity ratio of 11.99 percent. Overall, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s confirmed cases have climbed to 84,609. It recorded 9 new deaths, raising toll to 2,283, while its recoveries have risen by 430 to 74,470. There are currently 7,856 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Balochistan
The province on Sunday raised its confirmed cases to 19,497 with 44 new infections after conducting 1,054 tests, a positivity ratio of 4.17 percent. There was 1 death and 5 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 206 fatalities and 19,028 fully recovered. There are now 263 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Sunday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 538 to 55,594 after conducting 6,460 tests; a positivity ratio of 8.33 percent. There were 2 deaths and 292 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 559 casualties; 46,915 recovered; and 8,120 active cases.
Gilgit-Baltistan reported 9 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Sunday after conducting 350 tests; it now has 4,999 confirmed cases. The region reported no new deaths and 1 recovery, leaving 103 fatalities and 4,859 fully recovered people. There are currently 37 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, confirmed cases rose by 122 to 12,367 after conducting 831 tests, a positivity ratio of 14.68 percent. There were 2 deaths and 58 recoveries in the past 24 hours, leaving 344 fatalities and 10,689 fully recovered. It now has 1,334 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 127,306,311 people, with over 2,789,915 reported deaths. After a devastating first wave, the world is now slowly recovering from a second wave of the coronavirus, aided in part by the launch of vaccination campaigns. Overall, around 102,582,040 patients of the 127.3 million+ infected have recovered thus far.