ISLAMABAD: Owing to increasing number of Covid-19 cases, the hospitalisation of patients has doubled in the country within the past two weeks, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) Monday revealed. The NCOC meeting held under the chairmanship of NCOC Chairman Asad Umar, to discuss and review coronavirus situation in the country, was informed by the officials that over the past 24 hours the positivity ratio increased to 7.46 percent in the country.
Since the outbreak of Covid-19, Pakistan has reported 376,929 cases; 7,696 deaths, and 330,885 recoveries. According to the government's database for tracking the spread of coronavirus in the country, 2,756 cases were confirmed till November 22, resulting in a positivity rate of 7.46 percent.
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) remained top on account of Covid-19 with 11.4 percent positivity rate, followed by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 9.85 percent, Sindh 9.63 percent, Islamabad 8.09 percent, Balochistan 7.73 percent, Gilgit-Baltistan 5.23 percent, and Punjab 3.95 percent.
According to the statement, the NCOC was also told that the number of infections had risen in several cities of Pakistan, including Rawalpindi, Multan, Lahore and Faisalabad in Punjab; Karachi and Hyderabad in Sindh; Peshawar, Abbottabad and Swat in KP; Mirpur in AJK; Gilgit and in Islamabad.
Punjab till 10am on November 22 reported 498 new coronavirus cases by conducting 12,607 tests, while 13 lives have been lost in the last 24 hours taking Punjab's death tally to 2,861 persons since the outbreak of Covid-19, while 98,019 people have recovered.
So far in Punjab 114,508 individuals have been infected with the Covid-19. According to a statement issued from the Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah's office, the province over the past 24 hours registered 1,322 new cases and 16 deaths.
The total number of cases in Sindh is 164,651, while the death toll is 2,845, the statement said.
According to the statement, 10,837 samples were tested over the past 24 hours reflecting the positivity rate around 12.2 percent.
The KP has registered 502 Covid-19 cases and two deaths over the past 24 hours, which has taken total coronavirus infections to 44,599, and death tally to 1,327.
Balochistan has detected 66 new Covid-19 cases, no deaths, the provincial coronavirus tally has reached 16,810 and death toll stands at 161.
The AJK has reported 80 new coronavirus cases during the past 24 hours and three deaths following the new cases, the total Covid-19 cases in the AJK jumped to 6,203, of which 147 have died.
According to the AJK health authorities, 79,100 tests so far have been carried out in the state, and 4,584 people have recovered from the disease in the state.
Islamabad registered 449 positive cases of Covid-19 against 5,550 tests run in the federal capital with the positivity of eight percent, which took overall Covid-19 cases in Islamabad to 27,018 and deaths toll to 279.
Gilgit-Baltistan has reported 16 new cases and one death, following which the total Covid-19 cases in G-B have reached 4,542, while death tally 95.
Meanwhile, a statement issued here on Monday from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that after full recovery from Covid-19, Chairman NDMA Lt Gen Muhammad Afzal has joined office. The chairman NDMA was tested positive for coronavirus on November 12th.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020