The total number of COVID-19 cases in Karachi jumped by 446 on Friday, taking the total to 4,873 – over a quarter of Pakistan’s total of 17,611.
COVID-19 cases have risen almost by 200pc in Karachi over the last 11 days, from 1,691 on April 20 to 4,873 on May 1.
According to Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, 3,384 COVID-19 tests were conducted in the province during the past 24 hours out of which 662 had come back positive, taking the provincial total to 6,675; this means that nearly 20pc of the tests conducted came back positive.
In a statement released by the CM House on Friday, the chief minister said that six more deaths had been reported in Sindh during the past 24 hours, taking the toll to 118.
“This means that Sindh’s death toll makes up 1.76 per cent of the total number of patients.”
Shah said that 57,761 tests have been conducted in the province so far out of which 6,675 have come back positive.
“Currently, 5,262 patients are being treated for COVID-19 while 4,044 – 77pc – are isolating at home. Further, 733 are being kept at isolation centres and 485 at different hospitals.”
Shah added that 45 patients were in critical condition, while 16 of them were on ventilators.
Giving details about stranded nationals, the chief minister said that 483 Pakistanis had arrived at Jinnah International Airport from Dubai, Sharjah and Colombo.
“Out of these, 190 passengers tested positive; 92 belong to Sindh, 56 to Punjab, 24 to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 18 to Balochistan,” he said.
Elaborating on the statistics for Karachi, the chief minister said that 446 cases have been reported in the city out of which 173 emerged in Malir, 92 in District East, 70 in District South, 56 in District Central, 33 in District West and 22 in Korangi.
He added that 17 cases have emerged in Ghotki, 19 in Hyderabad, 11 in Jacobabad, 23 in Larkana, 15 in Shikarpur and six in Sukkur.
Shah explained that if the 190 nationals that returned to the country were excluded from the total count, there would be 472 local cases.
“This figure shows us that the COVID-19 outbreak is still wreaking havoc in Sindh,” he said, urging the people to adhere to precautionary measures for curbing the spread of the virus.
Shah also praised health department officials as well as doctors and paramedical staff and technicians handling testing. He paid a tribute to their services and urged citizens to respect their services.
Earlier, the Sindh chief minister had expressed the concern about the spread of the virus in slum areas after informing the public that seven members of one family had been infected in Karachi.
He had urged the people who were going out to receive ration bags or cash being distributed by the government, to take precautionary measures and practice social distancing.
Meanwhile, the Sindh government has decided to extend the coronavirus lockdown in the province through the month of Ramazan, Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani said.
The lockdown that had been initially imposed in the province on April 14 will stay in place throughout the holy month. “Industries and businesses will be allowed to open under strict implementation of SOPs,” he said while talking to a private television channel Friday.
“Changes will only be made considering the spread of the deadly virus in the province,” Ghani said. “If things get better, we will change our policies,” he stated, emphasising that the health of the residents is the first priority of the government.
Ghani advised people to practise social distancing and take responsibility for themselves and those around them. “For shopping, the government might consider opening few businesses with SOPs,” he said.
“We will, however, make sure that there are no crowded shops,” the minister said. He added that during these critical times, provincial and federal governments should not indulge in political point-scoring and work together to fight the disease.
