Pakistan’s Covid positivity ratio dips below 5pc after 10 weeks

Ag Agencies

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Federal Education, Shafqat Mahmood, tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday as Pakistan reported its lowest Covid positivity ratio in 10 weeks — 4.82 per cent.

“I have tested positive for coronavirus. I feel fine with mild symptoms. InshAllah will get well soon,” Mahmood tweeted. The minister is vaccinated, and had posted a picture of him receiving a dose of the jab on March 18.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mahmood attended a Hunarmand Pakistan Programme ceremony held at the National Skills University, Islamabad, where he delivered a speech. Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Youth Affairs, Usman Dar was also in the event. There was no comment from Dar.

Mahmood’s announcement of his illness led to thousands of tweets from students, who tweeted at him and the government, urging them to cancel the examinations. At the time of this reporting, Shafqat Mahmood and #CancelAllBoardExams were the top trends on Twitter, with more than 6,500 and 57,000 tweets respectively.

The development comes as the number of active Covid-19 cases hits 62,295 after 2,253 more people tested positive in the 24 hours leading to Tuesday, according to National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) data. Ninety-two patients died in the same period.

Despite the figures, Covid patients in critical care rose to 4,723. A day earlier, the number was 4,367. As of Tuesday, 4,723 patients were admitted in hospitals across the country, 522 of whom were on ventilators.

Ventilators occupancy was highest in Multan, which was recorded to be 72 per cent, followed by Lahore’s 45 per cent, Bahawalpur’s 40 per cent and Peshawar’s 35 per cent. Multan was also leading in oxygen beds occupancy, at 54 per cent, followed by Swabi’s 45 per cent, Peshawar’s 39 per cent and Bahawalpur’s 38 per cent. Thus far, Pakistan’s total cases reached 905,852, while the overall death toll was 20,400.