LAHORE: With one more patient of Covid-19 dying in Lahore and 476 new cases emerging in the last 24 hours across the province, the Punjab-wide tally of confirmed patients has reached 1,816.

On Monday, an elderly woman was reported to have died at Mayo Hospital after remaining under treatment since March 31 when she tested positive for the virus. A total of 15 people, including seven in Lahore and three in Rawalpindi, have so far succumbed to the virus in Punjab.

Of the new cases in Punjab, 268 were pilgrims from Iran who were kept in Multan, 84 Tableeghi Jamaat preachers, 21 prisoners and 63 citizens from various cities.

TABLEEGHI JAMAAT: During the last 24 hours, 39 more preachers quarantined at the Raiwind Tableeghi Markaz tested positive for coronavirus, taking the number of preachers infected in the city to 398, while there were 527 Tableeghi Jamaat members infected across Punjab so far.

According to city-wise details, 13 new cases were reported from Rahim Yar Khan, 17 from Layyah, four Sialkot, first 10 from Jhelum and one in Vehari during the same period.

21 prisoners among 476 new cases emerge in Punjab

Lahore housed the largest number of infected Tableeghi Jamaat members followed by Hafizabad 31, Rahim Yar Khan 15, Vehari 14, Sargodha 13, Gujrat eight and Sialkot and Khushab four each.

PRISONERS: An alarming situation is arising in prisons of the province after Sialkot jail reported its first three confirmed cases. Moreover, 18 others were reported from Camp Jail, Lahore, where 525 prisoners had been quarantined in separate cells. The total number of prisoners so far infected with the virus in Punjab has reached 49.

An official in Lahore said a prisoner, arrested over narcotics smuggling from Italy to Pakistan, had infected several others. As soon as he tested positive, the authorities immediately quarantined four others, who remained in his contact, in three cells where 525 inmates were present. The jail authorities had quarantined these 525 inmates in various cells established for Covid-19 patients.

Later, 29 of them had tested positive a few days back. Fearing that many of the 525 inmates may have infected others too, the authorities shifted 800 prisoners from Camp Jail to other prisons in Punjab.

The home department also banned visits of prisoners’ relatives in all 41 prisons of Punjab.

PILGRIMS FROM IRAN: The total number of infected pilgrims has reached 577 out of which 359 were quarantined in Multan, 213 Dera Ghazi Khan and five in Faisalabad.

LAHORE: Out of the 63 new cases emerging among the citizens of the province on Monday, 30 were in Lahore, excluding the Tableeghi Jamaat.

The total number of confirmed cases in Lahore has reached 290 -- the highest in Punjab followed by Gujrat 93, Rawalpindi 58, Gujranwala 32 and Jhelum 30.

Both suspected and confirmed patients were under treatment at Mayo Hospital.

Published in Dawn, April 7th, 2020