Pakistan recorded 157 deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday, the highest death toll in the country since the coronavirus pandemic started last year.
Previously, on June 20th of last year, the country’s peak death toll was 153.
The recent deaths bring the total number of deaths in the country to 16,999. Punjab had the most deaths in the country in the last 24 hours, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Pakistan’s national positivity rate, on the other hand, increased to 11.27 percent on Saturday.
According to data from the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 52,402 tests were conducted in Pakistan in the last 24 hours, with 5,908 of them returning positive.
The latest cases bring the total number of positive cases in Pakistan to 790,016. Punjab has 285,542 cases, Sindh has 276,670, KPK has 112,140, Islamabad has 72,613, Balochistan has 21,477, Azad Jammu and Kashmir has 16,327, and Gilgit Baltistan has 5,247.
COVID-19, on the other side, has resulted in the recovery of 686,488 individuals. There are still 86,529 pending incidents.
In light of the the number of cases, Prime Minister Imran Khan has ruled out a nationwide shutdown and advised the public to adopt coronavirus normal operating procedures to avert a “complete lockdown.”
PM Khan made the declaration after chairing a crucial meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) on Friday afternoon to provide an update on the latest coronavirus controls as the country fights the virus’s third surge.
Despite the fact that the NCC ruled out a complete lockout, the apex body made a few key decisions. The federal government has also requested assistance from the Pakistan Army in enforcing COVID-19 SOPs.
Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar enlisted some of the important decisions taken during the NCC meeting.
- Schools in cities with positivity rates above 5% will remain closed until Eid including classes 9-12.
- only essential businesses can operate after 5 pm.
- Outdoor and indoor dining banned until Eid.
- Gyms to remain closed.
- Offices will be working at the capacity of 50%
- All offices will be closed at 2 pm.
