Covid kills doctor among 11 as 1,049 more test positive

A lady doctor among 11 more people have died due to Covid-19 and another 1,049 cases have been reported during the past 24 hours in Sindh, with the death toll due to the viral disease reaching 3,634 in the province.

Gynaecologist Dr Anjum Saleem had been on life support at the Indus Hospital Karachi, where she breathed her last on Tuesday due to complications of the infectious disease, according to family members and officials.

Health department officials said this was the first death of a medical professional due to Covid-19 in Sindh in 2021, adding that some 49 doctors had lost their lives since last year due to the disease.

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said in his daily situation report that 12,457 samples were tested in the past 24 hours, resulting in 1,049 people, or 8.4 per cent of those who were screened, being diagnosed with Covid-19. The provincial government has so far conducted 2,420,405 tests, which have resulted in 220,501 positive cases, which means that 9.11 per cent of those screened have been found to be infected, he added.

Shah said that after the latest deaths, the rate of the diagnosed people who have lost their fight with Covid-19 continues to stand at 1.7 per cent. He said that 18,290 patients are currently under treatment: 17,472 in self-isolation at home, 11 at isolation centres and 807 at hospitals, while 720 patients are in critical condition, of whom 71 are on life support.

He added that 707 more people have recovered during the past 24 hours, increasing the number of cured patients to 198,577, which shows that the recovery rate has slipped down to 90 per cent.

The CM said that out of the 1,049 fresh cases of Sindh, 828 (or 79 per cent) have been reported in Karachi Division alone: 375 of the city’s new patients are from District East, 227 from District South, 89 from District Korangi, 74 from District Central, 43 from District West and 20 from District Malir.

As for the other districts of the province, Hyderabad has reported 40 new cases, Badin 26, Khairpur 18, Tando Allahyar 11, Naushehroferoze 10, Ghotki eight, Larkana and Sanghar seven each, Jamshoro and Sukkur five each, Shaheed Benazirabad and Sujawal four each, Umerkot, Matiari and Jacobabad three each, Tando Mohammad Khan two and Kashmore one, he added.

The chief executive urged the people to stay safe by complying with the standard operating procedures.