ISLAMABAD: As Pakistan reported a decline in deaths from Covid-19 late last week, Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar on Monday said that the next few weeks are critical for the country in its battle against the pandemic.
The portal keeping track of the outbreak registered a decline in single-day fatalities as 79 persons died due to the Covid-19 on Monday, down from 113 a day earlier. This is the lowest single-day toll in recent days.
The country had on April 28 recorded the highest number of deaths — 201 — since the outbreak.
In a tweet sent late on Sunday night, Asad, who also heads National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), said that more than a year after the coronavirus started to spread, it continues to “devastate globally”.
More than a year after starting covid 19 continues to devastate globally. Daily cases now exceed 9 lakhs, more than ever before . Daily deaths exceeding 15 thousand near the peak of jan 2021. The need for caution remains high. For Pakistan the next few weeks are critical
— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) May 2, 2021
“Daily global cases now exceed 9 lakhs [0.9 million], the highest since the start of the pandemic,” he said. “Daily deaths exceeding 15 thousand near the peak of Jan 2021.”
The minister while urging the people to follow coronavirus-related guidelines to avoid the spread of the disease, said the need for caution remains high.
Pakistan on Monday registered 4,213 new infections of Covid-19 after conducting 45,954 tests, receiving back a positivity rate of 9.17 per cent.
Punjab remains the worst-hit province in terms of deaths and cases followed by Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
8,572 individuals have lost their lives to the disease in Punjab, 4,667 in Sindh, 3,392 in KP, 691 in Islamabad, 483 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), 237 in Balochistan, and 107 in GB.
Furthermore, 306,929 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Punjab, 285,626 in Sindh, 120,064 in KP, 76,209 in Islamabad, 22,620 in Balochistan, 17,371 in AJK and 5,327 in GB.
