Pakistan crosses 1mn COVID-19 cases amid fourth wave

Lahore (Nut-Desk)

Pakistan’s coronavirus tally on Friday crossed the grim milestone of 1 million after the country reported 1,425 cases during the last 24 hours, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) announced on Friday.

According to the NCOC, 25,215 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours and the positivity ratio was below six per cent. The current positivity rate stands at 5.65% and the total number of cases are 1,000,034.

The NCOC reported the grim milestone exactly two months after Pakistan’s tally of positive cases crossed 900,000.

The nationwide death toll from the coronavirus now stands 22,939 after 11 people lost their lives to the disease. While the number of recovered patients stands at 923,472 and the active cases of the country are 53,623.

Coronavirus has cast a pall on Eid ul Adha celebrations for a second consecutive year, as Muslims across Pakistan celebrate the religious festival.

Eid celebrations in the country come at a time when a steady rise in COVID-19 cases has been witnessed and the threat of the Delta variant looms large. Owing to the potential of Eid becoming a super spreader event — and a probable cause for the fourth wave — the government has urged the nation to scale back on gatherings.