OBSERVER REPORT
ISLAMABAD The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Pakistan on Monday reached 8,678 after new infections were reported in the country and 14 more persons succumbed to the disease taking the tally to 181. The province-wide confirmed cases total stands at 3,721 cases in Punjab, 2,764 in Sindh, 1,235 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 465 in Balochistan, 263 in GilgitBaltistan, 181 in Islamabad, and 49 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The virus has claimed 182 lives while at least 1,970 coronavirus patients have recovered. Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah, in a message on the current coronavirus situation, said that the death toll ratio has now reached 2.2% in the province. In a video message earlier in the day, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, explaining the seriousness of the situation, said that the city’s District South had reported 68 cases of local transmission, Central 31, East 65 cases, Korangi 23, West 5 and Malir 4. “This is not an easy situation; therefore, we will have to take some strict and proactive measures to contain it and stop its further spread,” he said. Punjab Government Spokesperson Musarrat Cheema tweeted that 225 areas in the province have been sealed to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Cheema stated that if the coronavirus cases increase in a certain area then that area is sealed for a certain time period. She added that the decision is taken after consulting health professionals. In the latest update issued by Punajb’s Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department, the provincial government decreased the provincial tally by 101 cases putting it at 3721. The number of deaths from the novel coronavirus in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa rose to 67 early on Monday, a report in Al Riyadh. according to the KP health department. Seven deaths were reported in the past day. Ninety-eight new cases of the virus were also reported, the health department said, adding that the total number of confirmed cases of the virus had risen to 1,235 as a result. District administration in Peshawar announced that it has arrested 135 people for violating section 144 imposed in the area. The arrested people include restaurant owners, shop owners and a meat seller for keeping animals in his shop. Another coronavirus patient in Balochistan passed away while undergoing treatment at the Fatima Jinnah Hospital, taking the provincial death toll to six, according to the health department sources. The 70-year-old was a resident of small town near Quetta, they added. Balochistan has reported 33 new cases of the novel coronavirus, taking the provincial tally to 465. The provincial government’s spokesperson, Liaquat Shahwani, said on Twitter that the rise in local cases was worrisome. The National Command and Operation Centre said that highest number of deaths in KP compared to other provinces is due to the transparent and correct method of the provincial government to share Covid19 data. Five more deaths from Covid-19 and 223 cases have been reported in Sindh during the past 24 hours, according to government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab, taking the provincial total to 2,767. The total death toll has risen to 61 in the province. Wahab added that 635 people have recovered from the disease so far. Sindh’s tally of positive coronavirus cases is 2,762, Meeran Yousuf, media coordinator to the Sindh health minister, said. The province has reported 227 cases Monday. Six more police officers in the metropolis have tested positive for coronavirus taking the infected tally to 15, Karachi police chief said. The police official said that the personnel deployed at pickets were advised to follow precautionary measures and maintain social distancing to avoid being infected. Workers on Monday started returning to factories and industries located in the Landhi and Korangi areas of Karachi as the government eased a lockdown imposed to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. A few areas of Larkana city were sealed on Monday after 21 people tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the area a day earlier. Residents w ere ordered by the local police to stay at home
