Nationwide Covid tally tops 200,000

44% of patients recover, NCOC says 5,033 patients admitted to hospitals

ISLAMABAD: With the emergence of nearly 4,000 new cases, the nationwide tally of Covid-19 patients topped 200,000 on Saturday, while 44% of them fully recovered, four months after the country recorded its first case on February 26 this year.

As of Saturday night, the tally stood at 201,420 with 72,880 cases in Punjab, 78,267 in Sindh, 25,380 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 10,261 in Balochistan, 1,423 in Gilgit-Baltistan, 12,206 in Islamabad and 1,003 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The nationwide death toll was 4,099, while the recoveries rose to 88,358. According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 5,033 patients were admitted to 768 hospitals across the country, while the number of Covid tests rose to 1,214,140.

The NCOC said on Saturday morning that some 3,138 people tested positive for coronavirus on Friday, when there were 107,942 active Covid cases. It added that some 74 Covid-19 positive patients lost their lives during the last 24 hours.

The data shared by the NCOC, which serves as the nerve centre of the government’s unified response to the pandemic, showed that a total of 516 ventilators were occupied in hospitals across Pakistan out of a total of 1,561 ventilators allocated for Covid-19 patients.

Giving the details of coronavirus fatalities, the NCOC said some 4,035 patients had died in the country, including 74 on Friday. The deaths included 1,205 in Sindh, 1,656 in Punjab, 890 in K-P, 120 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 113 in Balochistan, 23 in G-B and 28 in AJK.

Earlier, a daily meeting of the NCOC, chaired by Planning Minister Asad Umar and attended by all the provincial chief secretaries, reviewed the arrangements for testing, smart lockdowns and other measures related to control the spread of the pandemic.

The NCOC took a very detailed look at the current pattern of testing. The NCOC sought reasons from the provinces for the decline in daily testing in the last week since June 21. The Sindh health secretary cited some administrative reasons for the decline in testing, saying the issues would be resolved in two to three days.

The provincial officials told the NCOC that demand for testing had decreased and the people preferred home Isolation. They also said that there had been a slight decrease in the number of patients with symptoms of Covid-19.

Due to 542 lockdowns since June, movement is restricted in 20 cities across the country, the forum was informed. Officials said that people were taking precautions, as public awareness had increased. However, they stressed the need for more steps to implement safety measures in markets and malls.

The provinces appreciated the NCOC’s TTQ strategy and security measures, which helped them in the targeted lockdowns. Umar appreciated the work of all the provinces. “We need to implement safety measures, especially wearing face masks and practicing social distancing, to control the epidemic,” he said.

 

(With additional input from APP.)