Sindh’s daily Covid caseload nears 3,000

KARACHI:

Sindh logged its highest single-day tally for the third consecutive day on Friday. As many as 2,862 cases emerged when 21,578 tests were conducted, according to a statement issued by the Chief Minister's House. Another 24 persons also succumbed to the virus between Thursday and Friday.

"Merely a month ago, there were an average of 500 cases daily in Sindh by the end of June. And now by July's end, the number of daily cases has increased to 3,000," said Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, sounding alarm as the provincial government announced an eight-day lockdown in the province.

The Delta variant, known to be a highly communicable strain of the virus, which wreaked havoc in India and has become the most dominant variant in several countries around the world, is the main concern in the fourth wave of the pandemic, according to the CM. He appealed to citizens to cooperate with the government in implementing its decision and said that things could reopen gradually by August 9. The focus of the lockdown will be Karachi, where cases are growing rapidly, according to officials.

Read More: Covid-19: tougher curbs in Sindh

However, the decision has been met with objections from some corners. Traders and members of the opposition criticised the decision to impose the lockdown for its heavy financial costs in an economy that is still recovering from the prolonged closures last year. They urged for mass inoculations and stricter implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) instead.

Virus tally

On Friday, the provincial pandemic tally and death toll rose to 380,076 and 5,971, respectively. As many as 2,862 persons were diagnosed when 21,578 samples were tested, indicating a positivity ratio of 13.3 per cent.

Another 493 persons also recovered from the infection overnight, bringing the number of recoveries thus far to 331,802.

The CM confirmed at least 42,303 active cases in Sindh. Of them, 40,856 patients were in home isolation, 45 at isolation centres and 1,402 undergoing treatment at different hospitals, where the condition of 1,215 patients was stated to be critical. At least 101 persons were on the ventilator.

Of the new cases, 2,267 were detected in Karachi.

'Inoculations, SOPs instead of lockdown'

Objecting to the Sindh government's decision to impose the lockdown, traders' groups, including the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), All Karachi Tajir Ittehad and Karachi Electronic Dealers Association, dubbed the decision a unilateral one.

Rejecting the decision, KCCI Chairperson Zubair Motiwala said that cases would likely increase as soon as the lockdown is lifted. The pandemic can only be dealt with through vaccinations and SOPs, he said, adding that lockdown will only serve to starve the traders and low-income groups.

He said that export-related industries are permitted to operate and restaurants have been allowed deliveries, small traders should also be allowed to operate and others too with SOPs.

All Karachi Traders Union Chairperson Atiq Mir said that the Sindh government should immediately reverse the decision of complete lockdown as it would affect 4.5 million poor laborers and daily wage earners.

The Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce (FPCCI) also opposed the lockdown. All industries should be allowed to operate seven days a week, said FPCCI President Nasir Hayat, commenting on the economic impact of the lockdown.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Sindh president MPA Khurram Sher Zaman censured the Sindh government for taking the measure against the National Command and Operation Centre's decision.

NCOC head and Federal Minister Asad Umar had advocated a smart lockdown instead of a complete one, said Zaman, adding that the government had not taken opposition parties and business leaders' suggestions into consideration.

Objections were also raised by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal (JIU-F) with its leaders urging on more focus on vaccinations. The decision to lockdown will hit daily-wage earners hard and affect traders, they said. The JUI-F leaders called for more vaccination centres to be set up instead.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 31^st, 2021.