COVID-19: 151 die, 5,480 infected

By News desk

By Our correspondents

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: The national tally of total active corona cases Thursday reached 89,838 with 5,480 new cases during the last 24 hours.

According to the latest update issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), as many as 3,699 people recovered while 151 died due to COVID-19 of whom 128 were under treatment in the hospitals and 23 out of the hospital in their respective quarantines or homes.

Most of the deaths have occurred in the Punjab followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Out of the total 151 deaths occurred in hospitals, 60 were on ventilators. The maximum ventilators were occupied in four major areas including Lahore 73 percent, Multan 73 percent, Gujranwala 62 percent and Mardan 73 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 Swat 60 percent, Mardan 65 percent, Peshawar 70 percent and Swabi 67 percent. Around 689 ventilators were occupied elsewhere in the country while no COVID affected person was on ventilator in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Gilgit Baltistan (GB) and Balochistan.

Some 57,013 tests were conducted across the country on Wednesday, including 14,716 in Sindh, 26,338 in Punjab, 8,261 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 5,651 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 929 in Balochistan, 241 in GB, and 877 in AJK.

Around 708,193 people had 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 spread, a total of 815,711 cases were detected that also included the perished, recovered and under treatment COVID-19 patients so far, including AJK 16,931, Balochistan 22,118, GB 5,296, ICT 74,640, KP 116,523, Punjab 298,818 and Sindh 281,385. About 17,680 deaths were recorded in country since the eruption of the contagion.

Around 4,629 had perished in Sindh among four of them died in hospital and one out of the hospital on Wednesday.

8,327 died in Punjab with 103 deaths occurred in past 24 hours.

81 of them in the hospital and 22 out of hospital.

3,238 died in KP among which 37 died in hospital on Wednesday, 677 lost their lives in ICT among which two deaths occurred in the hospital during past 24 hours, 233 lost the life battle in Balochistan among which one death occurred in hospital, 106 died in GB among which one death occurred in hospital during past 24 hours and 470 in AJK among which two of them succumbed to the deadly virus in hospital on Wednesday.

A total of 11,739,027 corona tests had been conducted so far, while 631 hospitals were equipped with COVID facilities. Some 6,327 corona patients were admitted in hospitals across the country.

The NCOC said Thursday ‘Chand Raat’ bazaars, shopping malls, public places, and recreational spots would remain closed from May 8-15. "The current spike of COVID-19 in the country merits effective measures to arrest its further spread with special emphasis on reducing mobility during forthcoming Eid-Ul-Fitr," the NCOC said in a statement.

The NCOC announced comprehensive guidelines with the title “Stay Home-Stay Safe - Eid-UI-Fitr-2021 from 8-16 May 2021" to curb the spread of the virus.

Moreover, the ban on Chand Raat bazaars extends to Mehndi, jewelry/ornaments and clothing stalls, the NCOC said.

A complete ban on tourism would be observed for both locals and foreigners.

All tourist resorts, formal and informal picnic spots, public parks, shopping malls will remain shut. All hotels and restaurants around tourist and picnic spots will remain closed. "Travel nodes leading to tourist/picnic spots closed; focus on Murree, Galiyat, Swat-Kalam, Sea View/beaches, and Northern Areas and other tourist destinations," the statement said.

Locals, especially people of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, would be allowed to travel back home, the statement said.

A complete ban on inter-provincial, inter-city, and intra-city public transport will be observed except for private vehicles, taxis, rickshaws, with 50% occupancy.

"Additional trains to manage extra passenger load till 7 May, thereafter normal train operation will be resumed. 70% occupancy along with stringent COVID SOPs should be ensured," it said.

Moreover, Eid-ul-Fitr holidays in Pakistan would be observed from May 10-15, NCOC said. "Announcement of Eid Holidays from 10-15 May 2021 — clearly stating the intention of reducing national mobility," the statement from the NCOC said.

Meanwhile, NCOC has suggested reducing international flight operations in the country by 80 percent owing to a surge in COVID 19 cases within the country.

According to details the NCOC has called for operating only 20 percent of the flights and a NOTAM in this regard would be issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) after receiving the directives. The NCOC directives have come a day after the Aviation Division summoned an important session to mull over increasing the number of international flight operations.

The secretary aviation will chair a session on Friday to discuss the requests made by the foreign airlines to increase the number of flights to Pakistan.

The foreign airlines have requested Pakistan’s aviation authority to allow them to increase the number of flights whereas a private airline pleaded with the CAA to granting permission for hiking the overall flights.

Sources said that the enhanced flight operation by the foreign

Meanwhile, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar Thursday said vaccination for the age group 40 to 49 years would start from May 3.

In a tweet, the National Command and Operation (NCOC) Chief Asad Umar said more than 100,000 people vaccinated in a single day on the second consecutive day on Wednesday. "Second successive day of more than 1 lakh vaccinations. Encouraging to see pace of registration also picking up," he added.

Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah Thursday directed divisional administrations in the province to ensure enforcement of complete ban on inter-city transport from Friday, saying this ban would also apply on the transport coming from other provinces.

“If any transport manages to enter into any district it would not be allowed to go back to its original destination as long as the ban is enforced”, Murad Ali Shah declared on Thursday while presiding over a Coronavirus Task Force meeting here at CM House.

The chief minister disclosed that he has spoken to chief minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa about the decision of provincial Taskforce regarding ban on inter-city passenger bus transport and would talk to the chief ministers today to take them into confidence too.

At the outset of the meeting the decisions taken in the last task Force meeting held on April 26 were reviewed in terms of their implementation.

Currently, micro lock down has been enforced in Karachi East, South and Hyderabad. The essential departments, including Health, Home, S&GAD, Finance, local government and public health were only working on urgent and important matters. Some of the private offices were defying government instruction, the CM was told.

The meeting was told that intercity transport was being closed from Friday, April 30 and intra-city transport would be allowed with SOPs.

Minister Health Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho told the meeting that during last seven days, April 22 to 28, 29,981 tests were conducted in Karachi against which 3,148 cases were detected that constituted 10.50 percent ratio.