The latest wave of coronavirus pandemic seemed to have been spreading its tentacles across Pakistan as another 406 people caught Covid-19 and two died during the last 24 hours (Saturday), showed the statistics released by the National Institute of Health Pakistan on Sunday morning.

As per the NIH data, the death toll in Pakistan has now climbed to 30,388 after adding the two fatalities whereas the number of total infections now stood at 1,533,888 after adding the fresh 406 cases.

During the last 24 hours (Saturday), 14,437 tests were conducted throughout Pakistan whereas the positivity ratio stood at 2.81 percent. The number of patients in critical care was recorded at 94.

https://twitter.com/NIH_Pakistan/status/1540867708572549121

India record 11,739 Covid-19 cases

India on Sunday reported 11,739 new Covid-19 cases and 25 deaths in the last 24 hours, the Health Ministry said. The country had recorded 15,940 coronavirus infections on Saturday.

Delhi on Saturday reported six more deaths due to the virus while the positivity rate stood at 7.8 percent. In its latest bulletin, the department said at least 666 fresh coronavirus cases were reported, adding that the data pertained only up to 12:59 pm on June 24, due to “technical issues with the ICMR portal".

With a rise in Covid cases, the city’s containment zones have increased from 190 on June 17 to 322 on June 24, an increase of about 70 percent, according to official data. Most of the cases are being reported from family or neighbourhood clusters, officials said. In order to contain the spread of infection, micro-containment zones with even one or two houses are being made, they said.

On the other hand, Mumbai reported 840 Covid-19 cases, a fall attributed to the glitches in the ICMR portal, and three fatalities.

New coronavirus infections continued to increase in Tamil Nadu as 1,382 people tested positive in the last 24 hours on Saturday. The death toll remained unchanged at 38,026 as there were no fresh fatalities.

Meanwhile, around nine prisoners in Nagpur Central Jail were tested positive for Covid-19, an official of the Health Department of the Municipal Corporation confirmed.

As per the Health Ministry, a total of 86.02 crore tests have been conducted in the country so far, of which 3,63,103 were conducted in the last 24 hours alone. 

Shanghai reports zero Covid cases for first time in months

China reported zero new Covid-19 infections in Shanghai for the first time since March on Saturday, as the country's latest outbreak subsides after months of lockdowns and other restrictions.

China is the last major economy committed to a zero-Covid strategy, stamping out all infections with a combination of targeted lockdowns, mass testing and long quarantine periods.

The economic hub of Shanghai was forced into a months-long lockdown during a Covid surge this spring driven by the fast-spreading Omicron variant, while the capital Beijing shuttered schools and offices for weeks over a separate outbreak.

But infections have slowed to a trickle in recent days, with Shanghai on Saturday reporting zero locally transmitted cases for the first time since before the outbreak in early March.

"There were no new domestic Covid-19 confirmed cases and no new domestic asymptomatic infections in Shanghai," the city said in a statement.

The lockdown on Shanghai's 25 million residents was mostly lifted in early June, but the metropolis has struggled to return to normal as individual neighbourhoods have reimposed restrictions over new infections.

Millions of people in the city were temporarily locked down again two weeks ago after the government ordered a fresh mass testing campaign.

In Beijing, restrictions imposed in May were later eased as cases declined, but tightened again this month after a nightlife-linked infection cluster emerged.

After days of mass testing and localised lockdowns, the "Heaven Supermarket infection chain" -- named after a popular bar visited by the patients -- has now been effectively blocked, Beijing authorities said last week.

The city's education bureau said Saturday that all elementary and middle school students could return to their classrooms for in-person schooling on Monday.

Beijing reported only two new local infections on Saturday.

However, China's southern manufacturing powerhouse of Shenzhen said Saturday it would close wholesale markets, cinemas and gyms in a central district bordering Hong Kong for three days after Covid cases were discovered there.

Chinese officials insist the zero-Covid policy is necessary to prevent a healthcare calamity, pointing to unevenly distributed medical resources and low vaccination rates among the elderly.

But the strategy has hammered the world's second-largest economy and heavy handed enforcement has triggered rare protests in the tightly controlled country.

China's international isolation has also prompted some foreign businesses and families with the financial means to make exit plans.

With inputs from AFP.