Ag APP
ISLAMABAD: The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Friday said it observed a consecutive fifth day decline in positive coronavirus cases after a three-week upward trend that brought cases above 165,000.
On June 13 (Saturday), Pakistan saw its largest single-day spike of 6,825 cases. By Friday, confirmed cases in a 24-hour period were 4,944. While the NCOC claims the decline in positive cases is consecutive, June 16 (Tuesday) infections at 5,839 were actually higher than June 14 and 15 (5,248 and 4,443 respectively), according to official numbers. Total cases since Saturday have risen by 25,832. As of Friday, the tally stands at 165,062. In a 24-hour-period leading to Friday, the country saw 136 virus-related deaths, which is equal to its highest single-day toll on June 16. The nationwide death toll stands at 3,229.
According to the NCOC, around 103 more ventilators were added to the national count, which takes the total to 1,503 in the country. In order to meet additional requirements of hospitals, the government was in the process of procuring additional ventilators on a “fast-track basis” and would be completed between mid-to-end of July, adding more than 1,500 ventilators to the existing number.
Operationalisation of 2,150 additional oxygenated beds across Pakistan was pursued “on war footing” to ease the strain on major hospitals in large cities. Sixty such beds would be handed to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), 200 to Balochistan, 40 to Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), 450 to Islamabad, 400 to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 500 to Punjab and 500 to Sindh.
Testing capacity has “increased by 65 times” and being further increased to more than 100,000 tests per day by mid July.
The NCOC also issued a mortality analysis until June 18 (3,093 victims), where 1.93 per cent were dead against the 5.37 per cent globally. Gender bifurcation showed 73 per cent of the victims were males, among them 74 per cent over the age of 50 years.
However, 73 per cent of the deceased had chronic co-morbidities — meaning they were already afflicted with other diseases before contracting coronavirus. It also added that 91 per cent of the deceased remained hospitalised, with an average stay of five days.
As many as 28,824 tests were conducted during last 24 hours and 61,383 people recovered so far across Pakistan. “There is no patient on vent in AJK, Balochistan and GB,” the NCOC added.
Around 546 ventilators were occupied across Pakistan whereas the total active Covid-19 cases in Pakistan were 100,450.
Meanwhile, Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid revealed around 50 per cent of Punjab’s confirmed virus cases were in Lahore, and urged people to follow SOPs. She also said the government would next week introduce “special SOPs” for Eidul Adha. “Lockdown will further create problems for the masses as daily wagers and poor segment would starve from this,” she added.
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