Corona deaths, infections plummet as Pakistan lifts more restrictions

The government of Pakistan growing bold as the third wave of coronavirus pandemic continued to recede across the country. The NCOC appeared confident when it lifted more restrictions on business hours, wedding halls, dining centres and other venues.

Accordingly, Pakistan has reported 23 deaths and 735 cases during the last 24 hours (Monday) across the country, showed the figures released by the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) on Tuesday morning.

As per the latest NCOC statistics, with the addition of 23 news deaths, the toll has now soared to 22,254 whereas the number of confirmed cases stood at 956,392 after adding 735 new ones.

See Also: NCOC relaxes coronavirus restrictions

According to the latest figures issued by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC), 735 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

Pakistan has conducted 41,133 tests during the past 24 hours out of which 735 persons were tested positive for the disease. The Covid positivity ratio was recorded at 1.78 percent.

During the past 24 hours (Tuesday), the total recoveries stood at 901,985 as the total count of active cases was recorded at 32,153.

Statistics 29 June 21:
Total Tests in Last 24 Hours: 41,133
Positive Cases: 735
Positivity %: 1.78%
Deaths : 23

— NFRCC (@NFRCCofficial) June 29, 2021

At least 336,507 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 346,036 in Punjab, 137,831 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 82,619 in Islamabad, 27,083 in Balochistan, 20,256 in Azad Kashmir, and 6,060 in Gilgit Baltistan.

Moreover, 10,740 individuals have so far lost their lives to the pandemic in Punjab, 5,427 in Sindh, 4,311 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 776 in Islamabad, 582 in Azad Kashmir, 307 in Balochistan and 111 in Gilgit Baltistan.

 GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Here are the global developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- Record in Saint Petersburg  -

Russia's Saint Petersburg, like the capital Moscow, posts record Covid-19 deaths as it prepares to host a Euro 2020 quarter-final on Friday despite the spread of the Delta variant.

- Twenty20 moved to UAE -

The Twenty20 cricket World Cup in October and November will be moved to the United Arab Emirates from India due to the pandemic, an Indian cricket board official says.

- US infections plateau -

After declining fast for two months, the rate of Covid infections in the United States has levelled off since mid-June thanks to localised spikes in under-vaccinated regions of the country, data from covSpectrum tracker shows.

- Australia battles flare-ups -

Infections appear in cities across Australia, with Brisbane, Darwin, Perth and Sydney all reporting new cases of the highly infectious Delta variant, prompting local authorities to impose restrictions.

- Italy drops its masks -

All of Italy becomes a mask-free, "low-risk" zone for the virus, marking a dramatic milestone for the first European country to be hit by the global pandemic in February 2020.

- S.Africa's third wave -

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa announces fresh restrictions in a televised address and says the country "is facing a massive resurgence of infection".

- Hong Kong UK flight ban -

Hong Kong bans all incoming flights from the United Kingdom from July 1 to curb the Delta strain.

- End of England curbs -

The British government is intent on lifting all of England's coronavirus restrictions on July 19, Sajid Javid says in his maiden speech to parliament as health secretary.

- Pakistan rush -

Hundreds of desperate Pakistani overseas workers overrun a government-run coronavirus vaccination centre in the capital as the nation grapples with a shortage of doses.

- Bangladesh panic -

Thousands of people are stranded in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka as authorities halt almost all public transport ahead of a sweeping lockdown on Thursday imposed to combat a deadly resurgence of infections. 

- AstraZeneca delay boosts immunity -

Delayed second and third doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine boost immunity against Covid-19, a study by Oxford University, which developed the jab with the British-Swedish firm, says.

- 3.9 million dead - 

The pandemic has killed at least 3,925,816 people since the virus first emerged in December 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data at 1000 GMT Monday.

The United States is the worst-affected country with 603,967 deaths, followed by Brazil with 513,474, India with 396,730, Mexico 232,564 and Peru with 191,899.

The figures are based on reports by health authorities in each country, but do not take into account upward revisions carried out later by statistical bodies. 

The WHO says up to three times more people have died directly or indirectly due to the pandemic than official figures suggest.

With inputs from AFP.