Pakistan’s coronavirus cases surged past 100,000 on Sunday while the death toll crossed 2,000 as the provinces and autonomous regions reported more cases and fatalities.
As of Sunday, Sindh had reported 38,108 cases, Punjab 37,090, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 13,487, Balochistan 6,221, Islamabad 4,979, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) 927 and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) 361. The total number of recoveries stood at 33,465.
As the federal government decided to stick to its policy of imposing ‘smart lockdowns’ to deal with the increasing COVID-19 cases, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said that Prime Minister Imran Khan’s “denial of the virus was proving dangerous for the country”.
In a statement, party spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb criticsed the premier for his government’s response to the outbreak, adding that he needs to come out of “arguments on smart lockdown, elite lockdown and curfew” and should blame his own “incapability and inefficiency” on the coronavirus pandemic.
KP chief minister’s aide Ajmal Wazir, while addressing a press conference, said that the province has an “excellent coordination” with the federal government. He said that the provincial government shares its input and recommendations during the National Coordination Committee (NCC) and the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) meeting and implements the decisions made by the bodies. He said that the country was “blessed” to have Imran Khan as the prime minister amid a pandemic. “If, God forbid, any of these people were in power right now; well their track record is before everyone,” he said. In Punjab, as the cases continued to increased, the local police and law enforcement agencies started using stun batons against those flouting the standard operating procedures (SOPs) devised to curb the virus spread. Reportedly, the stun batons were procured and provided on the orders of the authorities concerned to ensure that people stay indoors and follow the SOPs if they go out in public.
Meanwhile, newly released data revealed that the NCOC allocated and issued 250 additional ventilators -32 per cent of the total stock – during the last week through the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to overcome challenges in critical care. 72 ventilators were issued to Punjab, 52 each to Sindh and KP, 20 to Balochistan and 10 each to AJK and GB and 34 to ICT.
In Faisalabad, as of Sunday, 150 ventilators were available, and out of those, 57 were allocated for coronavirus treatment and only five were occupied. In Lahore, the number of available ventilators was 793, out of which 214 were allocated for coronavirus patients and 77 were occupied. In Multan and Rawalpindi, 150 and 229 ventilators were available, respectively.
In Karachi, the number of available ventilators was 461, including 136 set aside for coronavirus patients. In Hyderabad, the number of available ventilators was 50, out of which 20 were specified for coronavirus patients.
In Peshawar, 171 ventilators were available, out of which 75 were allocated for COVID-19 patients, with 47 of these occupied. In Abbottabad, the number of available ventilators was 25, out of which, 12 were allocated for coronavirus patients and four occupied so far.
In Quetta, the number of available ventilators was 61, out of which 29 were allocated for coronavirus patients. In Gilgit, 26 ventilators were available, out of which five were allocated for coronavirus and one is occupied.
In Mirpur, the number of available ventilators was 11 and all were allocated for COVID-19. In Muzaffarabad, the number of available ventilators was 28, out of which 18 are allocated for coronavirus. In Islamabad, 246 ventilators were available, including 92 allocated for coronavirus patients, with 13 of these occupied.
Earlier, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on National Health Services Dr Zafar Mirza said that 75 per cent beds in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) of hospitals were unoccupied and available for COVID-19 patients.
Meanwhile, PPP MPA Sharjeel Memon on Sunday said he has tested positive for coronavirus and has gone into self-isolation.
Memon is the Sindh government’s focal person for coronavirus in Hyderabad and also attended the provincial assembly session two days ago. On Thursday, PML-N Punjab Assembly lawmaker Mian Naveed Ali from Pakpattan had tested positive for coronavirus.
Naveed had told a news channel during a telephonic conversation that his health had deteriorated over the past few days. After experiencing symptoms of the virus, including fever, he got himself tested. After the test result came back positive, the PML-N lawmaker said he has isolated himself at home and his condition is better now.Previously, two provincial assembly lawmakers succumbed to COVID-19. PTI MPA Mian Jamsheduddin Kakakhel from Nowshera and PML-N MPA Shaukat Manzoor Cheema from Gujranwala passed away after being on ventilator for a few days.
Also, a judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Ameen-ud-din Khan, tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday. The judge has gone into self-isolation. Justice Ameen-ud-din Khan is a judge of SC bench II.Two more employees of the SC, namely Zafar Iqbal and Dr Yasir Khan, have also tested positive for the virus.
