Pakistan COVID-19 deaths cross the 10,000 mark

ISLAMABAD: The death toll due the coronavirus pandemic in the country crossed the grave mark of 10,000, reaching 10,047, as 55 more people died of Covid-19 during the last 24 hours, said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) issued on Wednesday.
A total of 2,155 new infections were reported during the last 24 hours, surging the national tally of cases to 477,240. Almost 4,619 patients have recovered from the virus in a day and 2,219 patients are in critical condition. The total count of active cases is 37,080 as 430,113 people have recovered from the deadly disease.
A total of 36,390 tests were conducted across the country during the last 24 hours, while so far 6,656,373 samples have been tested.
The positivity rate of Covid-19 cases has been recorded highest in Karachi up to 13.84 percent and lowest in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region up to 0.62 percent. The overall positivity rate of novel coronavirus cases stands at 5.92 percent.
The positivity rate was recorded 2.14 percent in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), 4.95 percent in Balochistan, 0.62 percent in GB, 4.44 percent in Punjab, 3.98 percent in Islamabad Capital Territory, 5.87 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and 8.4 percent in Sindh.
The positivity rate in different cities was reported as; 4.9 percent in Rawalpindi, 6.12 percent in Lahore, 4.21 percent in Faisalabad, 4.85 percent in Multan, 8.79 percent in Hyderabad, 7.21 percent in Peshawar, 7.89 percent in Swat, 9.94 percent in Quetta and 1.79 percent in Muzaffarabad.
Meanwhile, the highest number of oxygenated bed occupancy in the country was in Peshawar at 63 percent, followed by Multan 39 percent, Islamabad 35 percent and Rawalpindi 30 percent.
The NCOC reported that of the 2.1 percent fatality rate in the country, 70 percent of males and 77.5 percent people over the age of 50 succumbed to the virus; 73 percent had chronic comorbidities and 91 percent of the deceased remained hospitalised.
Meanwhile, the NCOC in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) and National Information Technology Board (NITB) has developed a National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) to ensure efficient supply chain management and administration of the Covid-19 vaccine.
The system will enable automated phase-wise registration of citizens for Covid-19 vaccine through SMS/internet, based on CNIC numbers. The immunisation mechanism will be intimated to citizens shortly. NIMS will be made available by mid-January.
The NCOC was informed that the federal government is in close liaison with the world’s leading Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers for its early availability in Pakistan. – TLTP