Staff Reporter
Islamabad
The number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan on Wednesday reached 35,303 as the government opened more businesses since ordering relaxation in the lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.
According to the latest figures by the National Command and Operation Center, Pakistan recorded another 2,255 cases of Covid-19 and 31 deaths, bringing the countywide total to 35,383 with 761 deaths attributed to the respiratory illness.
Following the continuous violation of SOPs and precautionary measures by the traders, the Punjab government is considering closing various markets in Lahore.
According to sources, a high level meeting was held under the chairmanship of Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Bazdar. The meeting expressed serious concerns over the situation in the markets.
Sources said that SOPs were being violated in markets and the proposal to close some markets immediately in being considered.
According to sources, the government is considering to close Hall Road, Shah Alam Market, Anarkali and Azam Market in Lahore, while there are no security measures at Ichhra Bazaar, Township Bazaar and other places.
Sources privy to the government said that the shops will be challaned in the first phase and then the shops will be sealed as SOPs do not seem to be implemented.
Punjab and Sindh remain the worst-hit provinces by the pandemic followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. According to reports, 13,230 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Punjab, 13,341 in Sindh, 5,021 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 2,158 in Balochistan, 759 in Islamabad, 475 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 88 in Azad Kashmir. Untill now 8,812 patients have recovered. The Punjab health department has reported 1,362 new cases of the coronavirus, the highest daily increase of any Pakistani province since the outbreak occurred. Three more deaths were confirmed, with the provincial toll from the virus rising to 214.
The spread of the infection through local transmission showed a dangerous upward trajectory in a recent report published by the World Health Organisation Pakistan chapter.
The report presented a dismal picture in terms of local transmission cases in Pakistan, province by province, on a weekly basis. The report showed that Balochistan had the highest rate of local transmission at 93%, and only 7% were imported cases. At second number was Sindh, where 92% were local transmissions and 8% imported cases. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 84% were instances of the virus being locally passed on while 16% cases were foreign.
In the worst-hit Punjab, 15% were foreign cases while 85% of the reported cases had emerged through local transmission.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, 37% were imported cases while 63% were of local transmission. Meanwhile, in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 17% were foreign cases while 83% were passed on locally.
Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah reported that the coronavirus claimed 16 lives across the province in the past 24 hours, taking the total death toll to 234.
“The good news is that 606 patients have returned home after making a recovery,” said Shah, adding that so far 2,835 patients have recovered from the Covid-19.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 231 new coronavirus cases have been confirmed, taking the provincial tally to 5,252. The province also reported eight more deaths — four in Peshawar, two in Nowshera, one Khyber and one Lower Dir.
