Before stepping down as the special assistant to Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan on health, Dr Zafar Mirza, who spearheaded Pakistan’s fight against coronavirus, said that all estimates made by international organisations regarding COVID-19 in Pakistan proved to be wrong and the world was acknowledging the government’s efforts as well as the decline in infections in Pakistan.
On July 27, he shared the “good news” that the country had recorded its lowest number of deaths due to COVID-19 within the past three months when the virus is said to have peaked. On the same day, the premier said Pakistan was “one of the few countries that had overcome the coronavirus challenge” and stressed the need for people to continue taking precautionary measures over Eid holidays and during Muharram.
By the filing of this report, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country stood at 276,287. The deadly virus had claimed 5,892 lives while the number of recovered COVID-19 patients stood at 244,883.
The number of COVID-19 cases reported in worst-hit Sindh is 119,398 while the death toll from the virus is 2,172. Across the province, 108,989 patients have recovered and a total number of 720,230 tests have been conducted.
Meanwhile, the number of cases in Pakistan’s most populous province, Punjab, which had briefly beaten Sindh to clinch the “worst-hit” tag from late April to late May, is 92,452. As many as 2,133 people have been so far died due to COVID-19 in the province while 82,512 people have recovered. The number of tests conducted in the province is 697,989.
There are 33,724 patients of COVID-19 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), of which 1,186 have lost their lives and 27,724 have recovered. A total of 208,869 people were tested.
Islamabad, the federal capital, remains the fourth worst-hit territory where the virus was detected in 14,963 people of the total 177,467 who underwent COVID-19 testing. Out of the total number of patients, 165 people died and 12,377 recovered.
The number of coronavirus cases in Balochistan is 11,654 and the death toll stands at 136. The number of recoveries is 10,080 while the number of tests is 56,919.
Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) has 2,055 cases, 50 people have died there and 1,543 people have recovered. Meanwhile, the number of patients, who tested positive of 17,561 total tests conducted in Gilgit, is 2,042. As many as 1,658 have recovered and at least 50 have lost their lives.
While the government is boasting about its smart lockdown policy that it says “has led to the significant drop in coronavirus cases with little impact on the economy”, it is worth mentioning that experts believe lower testing besides a massive shift in behaviours could also be the reason behind the drop. They, however, fear a second and deadlier wave that can wreak havoc if people flout social distancing guidelines during or after Eid.
