Zubar Yaqoob /
Tariq Saeed
Karachi/ Peshawar
Pakistan’s death toll from novel coronavirus reached 408 on Friday while the nationwide tally of confirmed Covid-19 patients jumped to 17,698.
Four hundred and forty-six of the 662 coronavirus cases recorded in Sindh during the last 24 hours were reported from Karachi, the city’s biggest single-day jump in confirmed infections so far. Karachi now has 4,873 cases of Covid-19, making up over a quarter of Pakistan’s total tally of 17,698 cases.
In a statement released by the CM House, he said: “The provincial death toll from the coronavirus has reached 118 or 1.76 per cent of the total number of patients.”
He added that 3,384 tests were conducted during the past 24 hours while 57,761 samples have been tested so far. The province also reported 172 new cases of the virus, with its tally of infections rising to 2,799.
Giving details about stranded nationals, chief minister Murad Ali Shah said that 483 Pakistanis had arrived at Jinnah International Airport from Dubai, Sharjah and Colombo.
Meanwhile, Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani said that the Sindh government has decided to extend the coronavirus lockdown in the province through the month of Ramazan.
The lockdown that had been initially imposed in the province on April 14 will stay in place throughout the holy month. “Industries and businesses will be allowed to open under strict implementation of SOPs,” he said while talking to a private television channel Friday.
“Changes will only be made considering the spread of the deadly virus in the province,” Ghani said. “If things get better, we will change our policies,” he stated, emphasising that the health of the residents is the first priority of the government. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continued to be hard-hit by the Covid-19 as within short span of twenty-four hours more than 300 new cases were reported and fifteen more people succumbed to the deadly virus thus taking the death toll to 161, highest among all the provinces.
In the backdrop of alarming situation a meeting of Provincial Task Force on Covid-19, on Friday with Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan in the chair, took stock of the latest Corona situation with special focus on the increasing number of positive cases and deaths in the province. Besides Corps Commander Peshawar Lt. General Nauman Mahmood a number of provincial ministers, top civil and military officials attended the meeting
The meeting also reviewed in detail the implementation of lockdown and social distancing measures and its effectiveness in containing the mass scale outbreak of Corona pandemic as well as its negative impacts on economic activities. The forum discussed various options and proposals to devise an effective, safe and workable strategy for the upcoming days.
It was decided in the meeting that implementation of SoPs in the shops already allowed to operate would be monitored strictly and in case of non-compliance, the shops would be sealed instead of imposing fines. It was agreed in the meeting that opening of these essential businesses would be conditional to the strict implementation of SoPs.
The forum decided that strategy for the upcoming days would be devised in consultation with other provinces and federal government in the next meeting of National Coordination Committee, however final decision would be taken keeping in view the peculiar ground realities of the province.
Addressing the participants of the meeting, Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said that government was fighting on two different fronts simultaneously; on one hand people have to be protected from the corona pandemic and on the other they have to be guarded against hunger.
“All the decisions of the government being taken in the prevailing situation are meant for the safety of the general public”, the Chief Minister maintained.
Later briefing the media the Adviser to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Information Ajmal Wazir announced that the families of doctors and medical staff – who die from the coronavirus pandemic – will receive a package of Rs 7 million. In the meanwhile the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, while changing policy, on Friday announced to conduct 10,000 coronavirus tests on daily basis.
