Umar urges public cooperation as Covid-19 positivity rate rises over 2pc

Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar said on Sunday that country's Covid-19 positivity rate had risen to over two percent in the last one week.

This increase was observed after a six-week stable national average of less than two percent, Umar revealed on his twitter handle.

The minister further added that mini smart lockdowns had been re-imposed in Karachi, Islamabad and Azad Kashmir, and administrative authorities across the country had been directed to ensure security measures.

Umar also urged citizens to cooperate with health officials and administration saying, "Success is impossible without the support of the people.”

The minister's announcement comes only hours after Punjab reported its highest single-day rise in virus cases after two months. The province had also reported its highest one-day caseload for the month of October.

Pakistan reported a total of 666 new cases and 12 deaths on Sunday. The cases were reported against a total of 28,893 tests conducted in 24 hours.

With the new cases, the country's tally for confirmed coronavirus cases now stands at 318,932, whereas the 12 deaths have taken Pakistan's death toll to 6,570.

Some 396 people also recovered from the virus, taking the total tally for recovered patients to 303,458.