Coronavirus cases cross 600,000 as threat of third wave looms

• Pakistan reports 2,701 COVID-19 cases in last 24 hours, taking countrywide tally of positive cases to 600,198
• NCOC says 54 new deaths recorded in Pakistan in last 24 hours, taking nationwide death toll to 13,430.
• The number of active coronavirus cases stands at 18,703, while 568,065 people have recovered in Pakistan.

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The number of novel coronavirus infections in Pakistan crossed the 600,000 mark on Friday after 2,701 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours.

The daily data issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) showed that Pakistan reported 2,701 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours taking the countrywide tally of positive cases to 600,198.

A breakdown of the data showed that out of the 600,198 cases, 10,816 were reported in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 19,171 in Balochistan, 4,959 in Gilgit Baltistan, 46,963 in Islamabad, 75,052 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 182,576 in Punjab and 260,661 in Sindh.

The rise in the number of cases would be alarming for policy makers since it was only a month ago when Pakistan had crossed the 500,000 mark.

In an interview with Dawn, Federal Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar said Pakistan is in the midst of a third wave.

“The UK strain is driving this. The dominant strain right now is the UK strain,” he said.

As per the government’s recent research, Umar said, the UK strain in Pakistan not only transmits faster but also has higher mortality.

Read more: We may go for another lockdown if coronavirus cases increase, says Saeed Ghani

On the other hand, the total active coronavirus cases stand at 18,703, while 568,065 people have recovered in Pakistan.

The NCOC said that 54 new deaths were also recorded in Pakistan in the last 24 hours taking the nationwide tally of coronavirus related deaths to 13,430. 

Out of the total, Sindh has reported 4,452 deaths, Punjab has reported 5,698, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has reported 2,138, Islamabad has 520 deaths, Balochistan has 202, Gilgit Baltistan has 103 deaths and Azad Jammu and Kashmir has 317 deaths.