51 more corona positive cases reported in Sindh in 48 hours

KARACHI: The Sindh health department on Sunday said one more person had died due to COVID-19 in the province, while 51 more coronavirus positive cases, including 37 in Karachi only, were found during the last two days.

On the other hand, sources at various public hospitals said on Sunday that at least three coronavirus positive patients with serious conditions had died. It was also reported that they were suffering from various other healthissues. Due to unexplained reasons, the Sindh health department did not issue any official data, especially the number of people found COVID-19 positive but other stakeholders released their data on Sunday stating that as many as 51 new coronavirus positive cases were reported and among them 37 were from Karachi, raising the toll to 881 in Sindh.

According to the break-up of cases confirmed on Sunday, 37 people were found infected in Karachi, four cases of local transmission in Hyderabad, two new cases of local transmission in Naushahro Feroze, and one case in Sujawal, one of the pilgrims in Sukkur and six cases of local transmission were reported from Larkana. With one more death due to COVID-19 confirmed officially by the health department, and the number jumped up to 15 in the province, officials said.

The provincial government has utilized Rs285 million from the coronavirus emergency fund (CEF) that was established under the chief secretary Sindh. This was announced in the fund committee meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah. The committee members comprised Secretary Finance Hassan Naqvi, CEO of Indus Hospital Dr Abdul Bari, Faisal Edhi of Edhi Foundation and philanthropist Mushtaq Chhapra.

The meeting approved an amount of Rs285 million utilized for the establishment of a field hospital at the Expo Centre, Karachi. It also approved another amount of Rs5.5 million for purchasing kits and necessary equipment for testing and treatment of coronavirus patients. The meeting was also told that till the last week, Rs3.5 billion were generated, including Rs2.87 billion donated by government entities, while Rs68.44 million by private entities and the people.

It may be noted that the Sindh government had established the CEF under the TORs of committee, and it shall roll out different measures for rehabilitation, long term welfare and financial well-being of the coronavirus-affected people and their families.

The chief secretary said the fund would be spent on the recommendation of the committee and the utilization of funds would be audited by leading auditors to ensure transparency.