In Sindh, coronavirus tally soars past 11,000 cases

709 more patients diagnosed on Sunday, nine more deaths reported

KARACHI: Sindh saw 709 new coronavirus cases on Sunday and nine more deaths due to the contagious disease, revealed Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Syed Murad Ali Shah during a meeting with traders on the day.

This brought the number of Covid-19 patients reported in the province so far to 11,480 cases, while the death toll is now 189.

At the start of the meeting, Shah stated that 4,215 samples were tested on the day, of which 709 were positive - around 17 per cent of the tested samples.

He added that the government had conducted 91,323 tests to date, and 11,480 people were diagnosed with the virus, which accounts for 12.6 per cent.

"The ratio of positive cases is on a rise because the pandemic is heading towards its peak in Sindh," claimed Shah.

Claiming that the Sindh government was conducting the most number of tests among the country's provinces, he added that the death ratio in Sindh was also lower than that in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, terming it an outcome of the province's lockdown.

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He also said that all those in quarantine were being tested for the virus, lauding Sindh's isolation centres as a 'success story' with a capacity of 14,000 beds.

"We have the highest number of patients being provided critical care services as well, which are being utilised since cases are on a rise," he stated.

Shah further disclosed that 9,210 patients were undergoing treatment for Covid-19 in the province, of which 7,973 patients were in home isolation, 684 patients were isolated at quarantine centres, while 553 were admitted to different hospitals.

Praying for the early recovery of coronavirus affectees, he shared that as many as 99 patients were in critical condition due to complications caused by the virus and 26 of them had been put on ventilators.

On the other hand, he stated that that 61 people had recovered from the virus, taking the total number of recovered patients to 2,081 in Sindh.

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Sharing details about the spread of the virus in Karachi, the CM stated that 448 cases had been detected in the metropolis on the day. From this, 152 cases were reported from Malir, 145 from South, 87 from Central, 81 from East, 54 from West and 29 from Korangi district.

Reiterating that random testing of grocery and vegetable vendors had been started in the province, he advised people not to go to any shops without wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing.

Shah apprised that 29 cases were detected from Hyderabad, 19 from Jacobabad, 16 from Shikarpur, 12 from Ghotki, 11 each from Sanghar, and Naushero Feroze, six from Sukkur, five from Larkana, four from Shaheed Benazirabad, three each from Jamshoro and Khairpur and two from Tando Allahyar on Sunday.