Scrambling to control the surge in coronavirus cases, Pakistan has reported 6,127 infection cases over the last 24 hours, marking the highest daily number of cases since June 14, 2020.
The total number of coronavirus cases has reached 756,285 while the positivity rate has climbed to 8.5 per cent, Dawn reported. Pakistan has recorded 149 new deaths on Saturday -- the second-highest coronavirus fatalities since the pandemic emerged last year.
The highest number of cases have been reported in Punjab province with 3,562 coronavirus cases. This is the first time the province reported more than 3,000 infections and its highest single-day rise since the start of the pandemic.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 958 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, down from 1,061 a day earlier, taking the total number of infections to 105,438.
The province also reported 35 more deaths from the virus, taking the total number of fatalities to 2,867.
Meanwhile, Balochistan recorded 62 cases and no additional deaths. Its caseload has reached 20,822 while the number of fatalities stands at 223.
Keeping in view the rising numbers, the government of Punjab has announced it will increase the number of smart lockdowns across the province, as cases of the novel coronavirus continue to surge.
The number of people who have recovered from the coronavirus in Pakistan has reached 659,483 after 4,527 more recoveries were reported in the country.
Pakistan is undergoing the third wave of coronavirus. Making the situation worse, the country is falling behind on the vaccination drive.
The country's government is negotiating with multilateral institutions to secure a USD335 million loan for the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines but the money cannot be spent on buying Chinese-origin vaccines.
The government has approached the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank for getting loans to procure the vaccines, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs officials.
( With inputs from ANI )
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