ISLAMABAD: The coronavirus positivity ratio in the country has surged to 9.45 percent, the highest since May 8, 2021.
According to the data released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Tuesday, as many as 5,034 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours after 53,253 tests were conducted across the country. The country has reported the highest number of cases in a day since August 5, 2021 when the daily infections were registered at 4,745.
The country also registered 10 more deaths, bumping the death toll to 29,029, official figures showed, with overall cases reaching 1.33 million after the detection of fresh infections.
More than 60 percent of total cases were reported from Sindh as the province reported 3,283 new coronavirus cases during the past 24 hours, bringing the total of confirmed cases in the province to 507,476.
According to Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, as many as 215 patients also recovered overnight, lifting the tally to 472,739. He added that six more patients succumbed to the virus during the period. So far 7,709 patients have succumbed to the deadly virus.
Parliamentary Secretary on Health Dr Nausheen Hamid said Tuesday that the federal government is mulling over schools’ closure for children under the age of 12 years, as they are yet to be vaccinated.
Dr Hamid said the government does not plan on closing schools where children above 12 years, staff, and teachers have been vaccinated. She said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) — the forum leading the country’s pandemic response — is devising a strategy to keep checks and balances on public gatherings, which are a major reason for the spread of the virus. It will be formulated in a day or two, she said.
The parliamentary secretary said there is no need to impose blanket restrictions across the country and curbs will only be enforced where the positivity ratio is high — with Karachi at the top.
“Public gatherings will definitely be suspended in these cities and criteria are being set for it […] the NCOC will have a strategy formulated in two to three days,” Dr Hamid said.
Meanwhile, Pakistan has seen a 30% spike in mental illnesses caused by the coronavirus in recent months, recent surveys and health specialists said. The latest survey conducted by the Sindh Mental Health Authority, a state-run government organization that provides mental health services in southern Sindh province, showed that depression and suicidal thoughts are the major problems developed among coronavirus patients or even those who have recovered.
Senator Karim Khawaja said that around 40% of the 1,500 survey respondents have reported suffering from low to high depression after being infected with the coronavirus.
