ISLAMABAD: Pakistan reported over 4,000 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, pushing the country’s infection tally above 200,000, health ministry data showed on Sunday.
“With 4,072 new coronavirus infections were detected in the last 24 hours, taking the total tally to 202,955,” the ministry’s statement said.
More than 4,100 people have died from the virus and over 2,800 are in critical condition. About 92,600 have already recovered from the disease.
Most of the known infections are in Sindh province — over 78,200 — and in Punjab — 74,200.
The ministry’s data suggest the infection rate has been slowing for the past few days, which Federal Information Minister Shibli Faraz on Thursday attributed to smart lockdowns introduced by local administrations.
The National Command and Operation Center, which is responsible for coordinating Pakistan’s coronavirus response, said on Friday that 96 million people are currently under 523 smart lockdowns across the country.
Authorities have also sealed off nearly 1,300 virus hotspots to contain the disease spread.
Health workers have been calling for massive testing in the areas to assess the prevalence of the virus.
The country of 220 million has conducted about 1.24 million COVID-19 tests since February — over 25,000 in the past 24 hours.
