Covid vaccine in Apr-June next year if trials go well: Atta

Ag APP

ISLAMABAD: Clinical trials of a Covid-19 vaccine will begin in Pakistan this week and if successful, the vaccine will be available in the country between April and June next year, said Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Science and Technology.

According to Radio Pakistan, Dr Rahman said the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences, based in the University of Karachi, has been approved for conducting clinical trials of the vaccine which is being produced by an acclaimed international company.

He added that after successful completion of all the trials the Covid-19 vaccine will be available in the country between the months of April and June 2020. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s active coronavirus infections jumped to 6,952 on Sunday after 640 people tested positive for the virus while the country recorded just a single new death.

Some 34,544 tests were conducted across the country in the 24-hour-period leading to Sunday — 14,502 in Sindh, 12,023 in Punjab, 2,640 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 3,210 in Islamabad, 1,320 in Balochistan, 382 in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), and 467 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Since the pandemic began, a total of 305,671 cases have been detected so far, out of which 292,303 people have recovered. Meanwhile, Kohat’s district government decided to close two schools on Sunday after five people tested positive—among whom are school staff and students. The schools have been closed till further orders.