(Karachi) At least 76 deaths and 1,629 new cases of coronavirus were reported in the last 24 hours across the country, which brings the total number of people who have tested positive for the virus since the start of the pandemic to 930,511, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) reported on Sunday.
The death toll has reached 21,189 while the country's Covid positivity rate is 3.10 percent. The total number of critically ill patients is 4,017.
Meanwhile, 52,427 tests were conducted across the country in the last 24 hours. At least 4,380 people recovered from the deadly disease while 40,142 people have been fully vaccinated during the said period.
Punjab recorded the maximum of 341,789 cases, followed by 322,350 in Sindh, 134,072 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 81,626 in Islamabad, and 25,589 in Balochistan. Azad and Jammu Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan reported 19,456 and 5,629 Covid cases respectively.
In wake of rising Covid cases, the NCOC issued new guidelines to curb the spread of the virus. The forum decided to implement broader lockdowns and restrict the movement of people. It banned all indoor and outdoor activities, including social, cultural, political, sports, and other miscellaneous events.
Earlier, the NCOC stated that all educational institutes in districts with a low positivity ratio of Covid-19 cases will reopen from June 7 (Monday).
However, it said, academic activities will remain suspended in districts where coronavirus positivity rate is still high.
Similarly, the NCOC decided to initiate a vaccination campaign on a massive scale under the "whole of the nation approach" in collaboration with various public and private partners.
The NCOC had set a target to vaccinate 70 million people by the end of this year. Planning Minister Asad Umar said that the acceleration of the vaccination drive in the country was made possible by the huge investment by the federal government.
He added that the government will spend much more next year on the procurement of vaccines.