–CM says over 50pc cases reported in Karachi
KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that for the first time since the eruption of the pandemic in the province on February 26, Sindh diagnosed 1,080 cases in a day, marking the highest ratio reported in any province until now.
“The new cases surfaced by conducting 5,498 tests which means that 20 per cent of the tested people were infected. This seems to be the peak and it may rise further with increasing the number tests,” the chief minister said in his video message issued from the CM House on Saturday.
It may be noted here that the provincial government plans to increase its daily testing capacity to 6,450 within the next few days.
Giving a breakdown of the provincial virus statistics, Shah said that out of the 1,080 new cases, as many as 583 were detected in Karachi. Of these cases, he said that 143 cases were from district South, 133 from Malir, 113 from East, 76 from Central, 61 from Korangi and 55 from the West.
On the other hand, the dreadful situation seems to be erupting in Pir Jo Goth with the city situated in Khairpur district reporting as many as 246 new cases in a day.
Earlier on May 4, 10 people were diagnosed as coronavirus positive after 35 people were tested while another 14 cases had popped up on May 6 when 97 other villagers were tested.
The chief minister said that local spread has hit various districts but Khairpur district became the worst affected after the death of a woman who may be the area’s patient zero.
“The woman who belonged to Pir Jo Goth had visited Hyderabad and had fallen ill on her return before dying only two days later. I think she was a coronavirus suspect case. But since she was not tested, she was not counted in coronavirus deaths,” Shah said, adding that her funeral was offered without any observing SOPs.
Expression his suspicion that the woman brought the virus from Hyderabad and infected others in the village by failing to maintain social distance, the chief minister said that the government had started testing all her family members and those who had attended the funeral.
So far, the Sindh government has conducted 87,108 tests against which 10,771 cases, constituting 12.4 per cent of the total tests, were diagnosed. At present, 8,571 patients, including 7,432 in home isolation, 609 at Isolation Centers and 530 at different hospitals, remain under treatment while 80 more patients were cured on Saturday and sent back to their homes with necessary advice and prescriptions.
Four more patients lost their lives while struggling against the virus on Saturday, taking the death toll to 180 which means that the total patients who have died make up 1.7 per cent of those infected while many are still battling for their lives.
“I am sorry to say that 101 patients or 17.2 per cent of the total patients are in critical condition, 23 of whom are on ventilators,” Shah said.
He said that new cases had also been identified through a special drive of random testing of vendors and customers at grocery and vegetable shops.
“This is a dangerous sign and speaks loud of local spread and the public’s lax attitude. This is why I have been requesting people not to go outdoors unnecessarily and take all possible precautions when they must go out,” the chief minister concluded.
