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Confirmed infections rise to 326,216 against 309,646 recoveries and 6,715 deaths, leaving 9,855 active cases
Pakistan on Friday recorded 736 infections of the novel coronavirus after conducting 27,050 tests—a positivity ratio of 2.72 percent.
“The second wave has started in Pakistan,” Planning Minister Asad Umar, who also heads to National Command and Operation Center (NCOC), told a private broadcaster on Thursday. “We are seeing a clear increase in positivity rate in coronavirus cases,” he said, adding that the virus was once more rapidly spreading because people have stopped taking precautions. He has urged the public to adopt government-issued SOPs, and appealed to the opposition parties not to gather crowds for their anti-government rallies.
Pakistan is currently in the midst of what health authorities have warned could be a second wave of the virus. Daily infections and deaths are once more on the rise, raising fears that disease is making a comeback as the public becomes more apathetic toward social distancing measures. Meanwhile, the country has yet to fully utilize its claimed testing capacity of 72,232 and is currently testing significantly below numbers proposed by global health experts. According to WHO, Pakistan’s testing policies likely only record the most symptomatic patients while ignoring the spread among asymptomatic carriers, which recent studies have suggested comprise the majority of infections in the country.
Confirmed Cases, Total – 326,216 (Tests: 4,204,320)
Punjab – 102,253
Sindh – 142,917
Balochistan – 15,767
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – 38,886
Islamabad – 18,578
Gilgit-Baltistan – 4,127
Pakistan-administered Kashmir – 3,688
Deaths – 6,715
Recoveries – 309,646
In the 24 hours preceding 8 a.m., Friday, Pakistan’s confirmed cases climbed to 326,216. Meanwhile, deaths increased by 13 to 6,715. At the same time, recoveries increased by 510 to 309,646, or 94.9 percent of total infections. There are currently 9,855 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, with the NCOC reporting 586 of them are in critical condition.
Punjab
On Friday, authorities reported 6 new deaths due to COVID-19, raising fatalities to 2,329. The province raised its confirmed cases to 102,253 with 146 new infections after conducting 10,957 tests. Meanwhile, its recoveries have increased by 12 to 97,301. There are now 2,623 active cases of the virus in the province.
Sindh
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Sindh on Friday rose by 276 to 142,917 after conducting 6,551 tests. The province reported 1 death, raising toll to 2,591, while its recoveries rose by 343 to 136,102. Overall, the province now has 4,224 active cases of the novel coronavirus.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
The provincial government on Friday reported 1 death, raising toll to 1,267. In the past 24 hours, its recoveries rose by 20 to 37,142 while its confirmed cases have increased by 76 to 38,886 after conducting 2,750 tests. The province currently has 477 active cases of coronavirus.
Balochistan
The province has raised its confirmed cases to 15,767 with 29 new infections after conducting 1,098 tests. There were no new deaths and 7 recoveries in the past 24 hours, sustaining fatalities at 148 and raising recoveries to 15,382. There are now 237 active cases of COVID-19 in the province.
Federal Areas
Islamabad on Friday raised its confirmed coronavirus cases by 140 to 18,578 after conducting 4,704 tests. There were 4 new deaths and 80 recoveries in the past 24 hours, raising casualties to 205 and recoveries to 17,050, leaving 1,323 active cases.
Confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in Gilgit-Baltistan on Friday increased by 20 to 4,127 after conducting 380 tests. The region reported no new deaths and 48 recoveries, sustaining toll at 90 and raising recoveries to 3,834. There are currently 203 active cases of COVID-19 in the region.
In Pakistan-administered Kashmir, 610 tests were conducted, raising confirmed cases by 49 to 3,688. There were no recoveries and 1 death in the past 24 hours, leaving 85 fatalities and 2,835 fully recovered. It now has 768 active cases of COVID-19.
Global situation
Globally, the virus has now infected more than 41,994,442 people, with over 1,142,744 reported deaths. Governments across the word halted flights, locked down towns and cities and urged people to stay at home at the peak of the virus’s spread, but have since eased restrictions to help shuttered economies rebound. Overall, around 31,187,231 patients of the 41.9 million+ infected have recovered thus far, with health experts warning of an impending second wave as winter approaches.