KARACHI: Karachi’s positivity ratio rose up to 14 per cent, and Sindh is planning on tightening the restrictions on the populace to curb the spread of Covid-19 within the port city.
As many as 7 more patients of coronavirus died overnight lifting the death toll to 4,698 and 966 new cases emerged when 13,821 tests were conducted.
This was stated by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in a statement issued here on Thursday.
He added that 7 more patients of Covid-19 lost their lives lifting the death toll to 4,698 that constituted a 1.6 per cent death rate.
“After Sunday, more strict measures would be taken to keep the people of the province restricted within their homes,” read a statement issued by the Chief Minister House on Thursday.
In light of the increasing number of cases, Karachi’s district administration sealed 64 shops, arrested seven persons, and warned 369, the statement said.
“People do not understand [gravity] of the situation,” Chief Minister Murad said.
The chief minister, on the advice of the experts and members of the task force, has decided that from Friday all shops, including grocery stores, would be closed after 6 pm.
Therein, the Sindh Coronavirus Task Force has decided on Thursday to impose a ban on takeaways from restaurants but allowed only home deliveries after the sunset from Friday (today) to Sunday.
A meeting of the Task Force chaired by Chief Minister Murad took stock of the Covid-19 situation and decided to further tighten restrictions to contain the third wave of the virus.
Pharmacies have been exempted from business timing restrictions, vaccination centres will operate round the clock. It was also decided that more restrictions would be imposed after the Eid holidays while taking preventive measures against the pandemic.
CM Murad announced all recreational places, including Sea View, Hawks Bay, would be closed to the public.
The chief minister also directed the health department to start giving vaccines to private hospitals with the direction to administer them free of cost.
The above decisions came during a meeting chaired by CM Shah, with the provincial minister and advisers Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, Nasir Shah, Saeed Ghani, Murtaza Wahab, Qasim Siraj Soomro, Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, IG Sindh Mushtaq Maher, and other concerned officials in attendance.
Shah said that 13,821 samples were tested which detected 966 cases that constituted 7 per cent current detection rate.
He added that so far 3,725,821 tests have been conducted against which 289,646 cases were diagnosed, of them, 92.4 per cent or 267,524 patients have recovered, including 805 overnight.
The CM said that currently, 17,424 patients were under treatment, of them, 16,759 were in home isolation and 665 at different hospitals.
He added that the condition of 628 patients was stated to be critical, including 54 shifted to ventilators.
According to the statement, out of 966 new cases, 635 have been detected from Karachi, including 336 from East, 114 South, 84 Central, 52 Korangi, 37 Malir and 12 West. Hyderabad has 155, Larkano 23, Dadu 21, Nawabshah 20, Thatto 17, Sukkur 13, Ghotki 12, Mirpurkhas 11, Tando Mohammad Khan 8, Kashmore, Naushero Feroze & SanghaR 4 each, Matiari & Umarkor 2 each and Jamshoro one.
CM Murad urged people to abide by the SOPs issued by the government.
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