Lowest corona deaths, infection cases since June 1

ISLAMABAD KARACHI/PESHAWAR: The country on Monday recorded the lowest deaths and positive cases reported in a day since June 1, while the national tally on Monday of total active COVID-19 cases was recorded at 41,726 with 1,019 more people testing positive for the deadly virus and 1,549 people recovering from the disease during the last 24 hours. Positivity ratio still remained high in Karachi.

Thirty-four corona patients have died during the past 24 hours, 33 of whom were under treatment in hospitals and one out of the hospitals in their respective quarantines or homes, according to the latest update issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

During the past 24 hours, most of the deaths have occurred in the Punjab followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Out of the total 34 deaths occurred in the last 24 hours nine of them had died who were under treatment on ventilators.

There were 2,676 COVID infected patients under treatment in critical care with 15 patients brought into various COVID dedicated healthcare facilities in past 24 hours. The National COVID positivity ratio during past 24 hours was recorded 2.59 percent.

The maximum ventilators were occupied in four major areas including Peshawar 21 percent, Lahore 23 percent, Bahawalpur 26 percent and Multan 45 percent. The maximum Oxygen beds (alternate oxygen providing facility other than ventilator administered as per medical requirement of COVID patient) was also occupied in four major areas of Abbottabad 28 percent, Gilgit 27 percent, Karachi 26 percent and Multan 25 percent.

Around 322 ventilators were occupied elsewhere in the country while no COVID affected person was on ventilator in Balochistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit Baltistan (GB).

Some 39,214 tests were conducted across the country on Sunday, including 12,825 in Sindh, 12,008 in Punjab, 9,250 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 3,486 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 893 in Balochistan, 361 in GB, and 391 in AJK.

Around 878,740 people have recovered from the disease so far across Pakistan making it a significant count with over 90 percent recovery ratio of the affected patients. Since the pandemic outbreak, a total of 942,189 cases were detected that also included the perished, recovered and under treatment COVID-19 patients so far, including AJK 19,783, Balochistan 26,232, GB 5,712, ICT 82,139, KP 136,074, Punjab 344,065 and Sindh 328,184. About 21,723 deaths were recorded in country since the eruption of the contagion.

Around 5,243 have perished in Sindh among six of them died in hospital and one out of the hospital on Sunday. 10,516 in Punjab had died with 15 deaths occurred in past 24 hours. All of them died in the hospitals.

4,224 in KP where eight of them died in hospital on Sunday, 772 in ICT among one of them perished in the hospital on Sunday, 294 in Balochistan, 108 in GB and 566 in AJK among three of them in the hospitals succumbed to the deadly virus on Sunday. A total of 13,857,250 corona tests have been conducted so far, while 639 hospitals are equipped with COVID facilities. Some 2,926 corona patients were admitted in hospitals across the country.

Meanwhile, the Sindh government has announced that businesses will now only be closed for one day - Sundays. Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah chaired a meeting of the provincial task force on coronavirus on Monday, in which it was decided to close the business activity for one day instead of two days a week, reported private news channels on Monday.

Taking notice of the news of issuance of certificate without getting vaccinated at the Expo Center, the Sindh chief minister directed the inspector-general and home department to take stern action against the persons concerned.

The Sindh CM said that he will not tolerate corruption or incompetence in any ongoing work against coronavirus. He said that having a coronavirus jab should be made mandatory to get a driving licence.

In the meeting, the CM that the rate of COVID-19 patients in Sindh has come down to 4.5% and some pressure on hospitals has eased now.

Meanwhile Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani on Monday said that the Provincial Task Force on Coronavirus has decided to allow in-person learning at schools for classes 6-8 from Tuesday.

The education minister said the government has okayed to start classes with 50% attendance after reviewing the latest situation of the pandemic. The minister added that if the COVID-19 condition improves further, primary classes will begin on June 21. “Vaccination is mandatory for all teachers,” he maintained.

The provincial minister said that at present the coronavirus positivity ratio in Karachi and Hyderabad is more than 5% but the situation is improving due to the rapid pace of vaccination.

Meanwhile, as coronavirus cases decline in the KP province, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Monday allowed businesses to remain open six days a week.

As the number of coronavirus continue to decline, the KP government issued a notification that stated that the district administration will determine the day when businesses remain closed in the districts. The notification instructed district administrations to hold meetings with businesses in this regard.