Pak passes grim milestone of one million coronavirus cases
Sindh government decides to reimpose restrictions from Monday, banning indoor and outdoor dining at restaurants and curbing market timings due to surge in COVID-19 infections
Pakistan has crossed one million COVID-19 cases with 1,425 new infections.
The tally has gone to 1,000,034. According to the National Command and Operation Centre ( NCOC), as many as 25,215 tests have been conducted, a process that continues unabated. The positivity rate has been recorded as 5.65 per cent.
The breakdown of cases and deaths reported so far: Sindh: 362,182 cases, 5,785 deaths; Punjab: 351,707 cases, 10,909 deaths; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 141,359 cases, 4,405 deaths; Islamabad: 85,230 cases, 789 deaths; Balochistan: 29,357 cases, 321 deaths; Azad Jammu and Kashmir: 22,592 cases, 608 deaths; and Gilgit-baltistan: 7,607 cases, 122 deaths.
Meanwhile, the Sindh government has decided to reimpose coronavirus restrictions from Monday, banning indoor and outdoor dining at restaurants and curbing market timings due to an uptick in COVID-19 cases, local media reported.
The decision was taken during a coronavirus task force meeting chaired by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Friday.
Top health officials continue to warn the people to observe the standard operating procedures (SOPS) to avoid an unusual emergence of the coronavirus.
They said that because of the precautions taken by the people, Pakistan has been saved from the disastrous consequences as compared to several countries of the world.
Officials said that there was still a great risk of the pandemic further spreading at a fast pace if the citizens became careless.
They said that the government has arranged sufficient COVID-19 vaccines so that a maximum number of people were inoculated.
They said that the vaccination was a great solution side by side with the precautionary measures.
According to the officials, although the campaign for the July 25 elections in Azad Jammu and Kashmir has been quite hectic, there were no reports of any phenomenal upsurge in the infections in the state.
President Dr Arif Alvi, taking serious notice of the violation of the SOPS against coronavirus during the Eid prayers at Faisal Mosque, has directed the departments concerned to observe strict compliance.
In a leter addressed to Ministry of Interior with their copies sent to Healthy Ministry and the Religious Affairs Ministry, the president expressed displeasure over the violation of SOPS.
“The President of Pakistan has shown displeasure and desired that all concerned departments may be directed to ensure strict compliance of COVID-19,” reads the leter, shared by the President’s Media Wing on Friday.
The leter mentioned that during the Eid Al Adha prayers at the Faisal Mosque on July 21, 2021, Alvi observed serious violations of COVID-19 guidelines.
“In the wake of fourth wave of COVID-19, the observance of COVID-19 SOPS has become all the more important to minimise its impact through implementation of stringent measures,” the president wrote in his leter.
The president stressed that instructions be issued to the agencies concerned to ensure implementation of coronavirus SOPS.
He directed that the violators of precautionary measures should be dealt with in accordance with the law.
On Wednesday, Pakistan received new doses of America’s Pfizer vaccine.
According to sources, 14,000 doses of the vaccine arrived at the Islamabad International Airport on board a foreign airline’s flight.
Upon arrival, the vaccine stored in ultra-cold chain refrigerators was handed over to officials of the Extended Programme on Immunisation (EPI) by airport officials for shiting it to its main warehouse in the federal capital.
Pakistan has signed an agreement with Pfizer Inc for procurement of 13 million doses of the vaccine, the sources said, adding the country is likely to get more doses of the vaccine this month.
About 100,600 doses of Pfizer vaccine were provided to Pakistan under the Covax programme last month, they said. The American vaccine would be administered to people with chronic diseases and weak immunity. People traveling abroad will also get the Pfizer shots.