LAHORE: The Punjab government has extended the lockdown in 35 districts of the province until Oct 15 while relaxing the restrictions in this regard for Rawalpindi for achieving the Covid vaccination target.

Issuing a notification in this respect here on Thursday, the Punjab primary and secondary healthcare department said the lockdown was extended on the low vaccinated districts.

Under the strategy, it said the government would relax the lockdown in those districts which will improve the vaccination target.

Meanwhile, the official figures said 739 more people tested positive for the coronavirus during last the 24 hours in Punjab, taking the total number to 431,093.

Similarly, the death tally reached 12,614 after 22 more patients died of Covid during the same period in Punjab.

Of the total new positive cases, 379 were recorded in Lahore, 48 in Rawalpindi, 45 in Multan and 34 in Faisalabad, the cities which have been recording highest number of the infections daily in Punjab.

The data showed the Covid positivity rate in Punjab was 4.2 per cent and in Lahore 7.7, in Rawalpindi 4.2, and in Faisalabad it was 4.1.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2021