STAFF REPORTER
ISLAMABAD In the last 24 hours, there have been a total of 796 new cases of Coronavirus and 25 deaths have been reported in Pakistan, raising the nationwide death toll to 207. Now the confirmed cases have reached 9,665 after new infections were confirmed after 5,347 tests were conducted. Adviser to the Prime Minister on Covid-19 Dr Faisal Sultan has said coronavirus infections in Pakistan are expected to reach 12,000-15,000 by the end of April, as projected by the government experts. Noting that 17 people died in the country of the virus on Monday, he said: “A serious situation is ongoing; we are comparatively in a better situation and we have to maintain it. “For maintaining it we need to follow the SOPs especially for our elderly.” The death toll from the coronavirus reached 207 after Punjab reported four more deaths and Sindh recorded five deaths. Province-wise reports of deaths are as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 74, Sindh 66, Punjab 49, Balochistan 6, Islamabad 3, Gilgit-Baltistan 3 deaths. The nationwide tally of Covid-19 patients stands at 9,665 with 4,255 cases in Punjab, 3,053 in Sindh, 1,345 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 495 in Balochistan, 281 in GilgitBaltistan, 185 in Islamabad and 51 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. At least 2,073 coronavirus patients have recovered. Punjab’s Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department has reported 60 new cases of coronavirus in the province, taking the tally to 4,255. Nearly half of the new cases (29) have been reported from Lahore. A coronavirus patient from North Waziristan escaped from a Sargodha Hospital but was immediately arrested. The 47-year-old patient was shifted to the isolation ward at DHQ Hospital. The Balochistan Home Department on Tuesday announced the extension in the lockdown till May 5, says a notification. The shops and industries that have been allowed to resume operations have been directed to adhere to the SOPs issued by the government to prevent the spread of the virus. The Chief Minister, Jam Kamal Khan also announced one more death which takes the provincial death tally to six. Thirty new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Balochistan, taking the provincial tally to 495, according to Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Ali Shahwani. Taking to Twitter, he said the rapidly increasing number of locally transmitted virus cases is a “cause for concern”. Spokesperson for the Sindh government Murtaza Wahab announced 289 fresh cases of coronavirus, taking the province’s tally to 3,053. He also reported five more deaths from the virus in the past 24 hours. The total deaths in the province now stand at 66. The number of recoveries was stated to be 30, which means the current provincial tally stands at 665. Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has thanked the ulema for “cooperating with the government so far”. “Mosques are still open and Azaan is being delivered every day,” he said while talking to media in Larkana. “Alvi Sahib’s SOPs [decided with the ulema] need to be followed by worshippers.” “Our first priority is to stop the spread of the virus. Because it will be very difficult for daily wagers to survive if they contract corona?
