Corona rising

The Covid-19 pandemic is taking a nasty turn in Pakistan as the number of positive cases is rising by the day – the latest high-profile case being Prime Minister Imran Khan himself. It is thus essential that standard operating procedures (SOPs) and precautions to curb the growing number of cases are adhered to. We have seen lately that people have been showing a greater disregard for most precautions that the WHO has suggested we must follow. If this trend continues, it will result in a dangerous and painful situation for the whole country. The third week of March has demonstrated that Pakistan has reported the highest number of daily cases since July. With thousands of cases daily being reported the medical facilities available will start crumbling soon. The country reported 3,876 cases in the 24 hours on March 19. This was the highest number since July 2, 2020, when 4,432 cases were reported.

Punjab has the dubious distinction of being in the lead with around two thousand cases daily. In terms of population ratio, Islamabad is also presenting a troubling scenario – with an average of 300 positive cases daily. For a small city such as Islamabad this number is disturbing, especially in view of it being the seat of the government. If the number of cases keep increasing in Islamabad and Punjab with the same positivity rate, it will not take long for the numbers to see an exponential growth in other provinces too. There is an immediate and urgent need to curtail the country’s caseload which has risen sharply in the last two weeks. The data coming from nearly all corners of the country should frighten us, but it seems that it has been taken rather lightly. We have seen a nearly fifty percent increase in daily cases week over week.

With a positivity rate of nearly 10 percent now, federal, provincial, and local governments should make it absolutely mandatory for all big and small businesses, departments, educational institutions, general stores, and industries to comply with the SOPs. Facilities at hospitals need urgent upgrades to accommodate and vaccinate large numbers of people who are turning up for vaccination. The current pace of vaccination is simply not fast enough to prevent further spread of the virus. So, there should be strict imposition of the SOPs, coupled with rapid vaccination, and finally the availability of more ventilators at health points so that the victims of this virus are not turned away by hospitals. Any lax attitude in tackling this challenge will pose a grave threat to people. In this, we hope all relevant departments come together and work in tandem to counter this problem.