Staff Reporter Islamabad
Pakistan on Friday recorded more than 4,000 coronavirus cases in a day for the first time since July, driven by a spike in infections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as the country battles the third wave of the virus.
According to the government’s database for tracking the spread of the coronavirus, 4,368 cases were reported in the last 24 hours, up from 3,946 a day earlier.
This is the highest single-day caseload recorded since July 2, 2020, when the country detected 4,432 infections during the first wave.
The majority of the new cases were reported in Punjab which accounted for 2,451 (56.1 per cent) of the tally.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also saw a jump in new cases, confirming 890 infections compared to yesterday’s 583.
The country’s positivity rate has risen to 10.2pc. The country-wide breakdown of new cases is as follows:
Punjab: 2,451, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 890, Sindh: 247, Balochistan: 32, Islamabad: 663, Azad Jammu and Kashmir: 79 and Gilgit Baltistan 6.
In the same time period, the country recorded 63 fatalities from the virus, 43 (68.2pc) were confirmed in Punjab.
Meanwhie, head of the National Command and Operation Centre Asad Umar announced on Friday that people aged 50 and above can sign up to get vaccinated for coronavirus starting next week.
“Registration of those who are 50 plus for Covid vaccination will be opened on March 30,” announced the minister in a tweet.
Umar encouraged everyone over the age of 50 to register when the process begins, also reminding those who are 60 and older that registration for them had already begun.
