ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI: Covid-19 has spread to two new areas in the capital, where another 50 cases of the disease have been reported in the last 48 hours.

G-14 and Mumtaz City have now reported one Covid-19 patient each, officials from the capital administration said, and there are also four suspected patients in G-14.

Another 12 cases were reported in I-10, followed by four in Lohi Bher and three each in G-8, Rawal Town and Tarlai. They said two more cases were reported in G-11, G-13 and I-9 each, and one each from Bhara Kahu, E-11, F-10, F-7, F-8, G-10, G-6, G-9, I-11, Kirpa, Koral, Sohan and Tarnol.

Islamabad now has 415 confirmed cases of Covid-19, up from 365 two days ago. The number of suspected cases has also risen from 1,767 to 1,820 during this period. There are 504 people quarantined at 11 separate facilities.

The officials said 12 more patients have recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries from 44 to 56.

G-14, Mumtaz City report a case each while patients continue to rise in I-10, Lohi Bher and other areas

There are 355 active cases in the capital, of which 21 patients are admitted to three hospitals - eight are critical of whom three have been placed on ventilators. Another 24 patients are being housed at a quarantine centre and the rest have been isolated at home.

105 quarantined passengers test positive

Around half of the 211 passengers who travelled to Islamabad from Abu Dhabi have tested positive for Covid-19.

Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Anwarul Haq told Dawn that all the passengers travelled to Islamabad on board Etihad Airways flight EY-213 on April 28. They were quarantined at the Fatima Jinnah quarantine centre shortly after landing.

Samples were taken from the passengers, of whom 105 tested positive and 79 were negative.

One of the passengers is from Karachi, and the rest are from various parts of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Kashmir.

Rawalpindi reports more cases

Another 46 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Rawalpindi, bringing the number of confirmed cases to 618. There have now been 36 deaths and 185 recovering overall.

No deaths were reported from the disease on Monday, while 18 more patients were discharged from hospitals after recovering.

Most of the district’s new patients were from the Chaklala and Rawalpindi cantonments and areas in the Rawal Division, including the Airport Housing Society, Bagh Sardaran, Pirwadhai, Tench Bhatta, Teli Mohallah, Dhoke Ratta, Akal Ghar, Bakra Mandi, Shakrial, Dhoke Kala Khan, Dhoke Paracha, Satellite Town, Dhoke Kashmirian and Shah Allah Ditta Road.

According to the district administration and health authorities, there have been 3,105 suspected patients in Rawalpindi and the test results of 625 are awaited. A total of 1,846 people have tested negative for Covid-19.

The Rawal Division is the worst-hit area in Rawalpindi, with 115 patients admitted to hospital, 54 isolated at home, 13 deaths and 90 recoveries reported so far, according to the district administration.

Rawalpindi Cantonment is the second-worst, with 53 patients admitted, 47 isolated at home, 20 recoveries and 12 deaths.

The administration said 3,194 people were paid under the Ehsaas cash disbursements programme in Rawalpindi district on Monday.

Deceased doctor’s mother contracts Covid-19

The mother of a young doctor who died from Covid-19 has also been diagnosed with the disease in Gujar Khan, according to health department sources.

The patient, whose daughter contracted Covid-19 while working at a Bahawalpur hospital and died at Holy Family Hospital in Rawalpindi, has been isolated at home.

A police constable with theDina city policehas also tested positive for Covid-19 and has been taken to the Jhelum District Headquarters Hospital.

Health sources said that Jhelum has reported 132 Covid-19 cases so far, with 106 recoveries and three deaths. In Gujar Khan tehsil, 58 people have tested positive for the disease of whom 21 have recovered and six have died, the health sources said.

Taxila sees highest single-day rise in cases

The highest single-day increase in Covid-19 cases was reported in Taxila on Monday. With the emergence of six new cases, the tally rose to 40 in the city, the health department announced.

Deputy District Officer (Health) Dr Sara Qadeer confirmed that six people, including a dermatologist from Wah General Hospital (WGH), were diagnosed with Covid-19 in the city.

Dr Qadeer said three other people who tested positive belonged to the same family. The family lives in Mohallah Inayat Shahi and comprises a man, his wife and their daughter.

“The family has been shifted to Pakistan Ordnance Factories Hospital Wah, [there is] one patient each in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences and Wah General Hospital while the doctor has been quarantined at home,” she added.

According to Assistant Commissioner Mohammad Faheem, the area from where the family tested positive has been sealed.

Moreover, health officials said that the coronavirus response force has collected samples of five of the dermatologist’s relatives, including her husband, who is also a health practitioner, her two sons and in-laws.

— Additional reporting by Hamid Asghar and Amjad Iqbal

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2020