LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday registered 3,495 new cases over the last 24 hours, receiving back an alarming transmission rate of 7.8 per cent, the government said.
The government portal keeping track of the outbreak in Pakistan reported a grim situation as for the first time since December 6, the cases crossed the milestone of 3,500.
Pakistan has had a lower rate of severe disease from the contagious disease, but it has dealt with two prior waves of widespread infections.
The incumbent surge in the national positivity rate is “alarming” and may herald further increases in the near future, health experts and authorities warned.
“If sop [standard operation procedures] compliance does not improve, we will be forced to place stronger restrictions on activities,” Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar, who also heads the National Command Operation Centre (NCOC), said in a tweet.
Sharp spike in covid positivity. Hospital daily admissions & people in critical care rising fast. If sop compliance does not improve, we will be forced to place stronger restrictions on activities. Please be very very careful. The new strain spreads faster and is more deadly.
— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) March 18, 2021
The new cases brought the total number of Covid-19 infections since the start of the pandemic to 615,810 with 13,717 deaths.
Meanwhile, in the last 24 hours, deaths increased by 61 to reach 13,717. While recoveries rose by 1,634 to stand at 577,501 — or 93.8 per cent of total infections.
Currently, there are 24,592 active Covid-19 cases in the country, with 2,062 of them in critical condition, the NCOC said.
VACCINE RATES TO BE CAPPED:
Separately, the government announced to reverse its decision to allow uncapped prices for Covid-19 vaccines imported by private firms, the health minister said — a move that coincided with the arrival of a first shipment of privately imported Russian Sputnik-V shots.
Largely reliant on the COVAX vaccine sharing initiative for developing nations, the government last month allowed private firms to import coronavirus vaccines and agreed to exempt them from price caps.
“Now, however, there is a formula, already in vogue, to determine maximum price,” Dr Faisal Sultan told Reuters. “So yes, there is a price cap that DRAP [Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan] will recommend and get approval for,” he said.
An official with AG Pharma Limited, the company that imported the Sputnik shots, said that the first shipment of 50,000 doses arrived on Wednesday night and that it will be made available to the public as soon as the government agreed on a price.
The worst-hit province reported 1,824 new infections after conducting 17,127 tests, receiving back a positivity rate of 10.65 percent. It now has 191,186 confirmed cases.
Amid the rising cases, the provincial government imposed a lockdown in seven high-burdened cities, restricting the movement of the people to their homes, while all commercial activities, establishments, markets and areas throughout the province shall be closed by 6:00 pm.
Ministry of National Health Services and Regulations has urged people to adopt health guidelines as fears grew that the country was now in the grip of a third wave of Covid-19.
“We are trying our best to take all necessary measures to control the infections, but it is almost impossible without public support,” a spokesperson for the ministry said earlier this week.
VACCINATION DRIVE:
Authorities have administered at least 72,882 doses of Covid-19 vaccines so far. Assuming every person needs 2 doses, that is enough to have vaccinated less than 0.1 per cent of the country’s population.
The government on Wednesday received another Chinese donation of 500,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, bringing the country’s total supply to 1 million shots, Health Minister Dr Faisal Sultan confirmed.
“These 500,000 doses will ensure smooth continuation of our vaccine drive, currently underway for senior citizens,” Dr Faisal said in a tweet.
Sinopharm, the only vaccine currently available in the country, requires two doses.
The country has not secured any vaccine from drug manufacturers and is depending on the GAVI/WHO COVAX initiative for poorer nations and the donations.
The government is expecting to get GAVI’s first batch of 2.8 million doses of AstraZeneca sometime later this month, officials said.
Besides Sinopharm and AstraZeneca, Pakistan has approved Russia’s Sputnik and China’s CanSino vaccines for emergency use.
CanSinoBIO has released interim efficacy results from a multi-country trial, which included Pakistan, showing 65.7 per cent efficacy in preventing symptomatic coronavirus cases and a 90.98 per cent success rate in stopping severe infections.
In Pakistan, the efficacy of the CanSinoBIO vaccine at preventing symptomatic cases was 74.8 per cent and 100 per cent at preventing severe disease.
Reporting from Kotli Azad Kashmir. Here smart lockdown is implemented where marriage halls are open while schools are closed. Markets are open and jampacked while rickshaws are banned. What is going on? Ridiculous policies!!
Khan’s failed policies are now claiming lives of the poor. No one trusts sinopharm vaccine.