ISLAMABAD: The coronavirus situation continued to worsen as 105 deaths and more than 5,000 new cases were reported for the second consecutive day on Friday, taking the national death toll to 15,229.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the country reported 5,312 cases on Friday while the coronavirus positivity ratio was recorded at 9.6 per cent. With 5,312 new cases, the number of active cases in the country has risen to 710,829. About 625,789 people have so far recovered from the virus in the country.

In a provincial breakdown, the highest number of coronavirus cases were reported in Sindh, followed by Punjab and Balochistan. The total number of coronavirus patients in Sindh has reached 267,970 while 4,521 people have died in the province.

The total number of coronavirus patients in Punjab is 243,295 and 6,851 people have died due to the virus. The total number of patients in Balochistan is 20,097 and the death toll is 19,295.

Number of patients in Sindh hits 267,970

According to the government’s portal, the total number of coronavirus patients in the federal capital is 62,775 and 588 patients have died from the virus. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the number of coronavirus patients was recorded at 96,128 with 2,553 deaths on Friday while in Azad Kashmir, 14,069 cases have been reported with 391 deaths since the pandemic hit the country last year. In Gilgit-Baltistan, 5,064 cases have been reported while 103 people have lost their lives to the virus.

Meanwhile, the vaccination process in the country has speeded up and the NCOC asked the provincial governments to ensure the implementation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to avoid further spread of Covid-19 among the people.

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Friday asked the people to follow SOPs and use mask to avoid spread of the virus.

He stated this during his visit to vaccination camps in Maira Sumbal Jafar. He reviewed the process of vaccination of senior citizens.

In his tweet, the minister said: “These camps are being set up in communities to reach out to the elderly and facilitate their vaccination. Those above 65 are being vaccinated at these camps.”

During his visit, he inquired about problems from the camp staff and praised the National Institute of Health (NIH) team and the Islamabad administration for arranging vaccination facilities.

The minister was informed that citizens were provided the best quality vaccine. He called upon the people to get vaccinated on their turn so that the pandemic could be rooted out as early as possible.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2021