As Pakistan confirmed that it has detected the first case of the deadly Indian variant in Sindh, the country has recorded that another 73 people lost their lives to coronavirus whereas 2,455 fresh cases were reported during the last 24 hours (Friday), showed the data released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Saturday morning.

As per the latest NCOC figures, the death toll has now surged to 20,680 after adding 73 new fatalities whereas the number of confirmed cases stood at 916,239 after adding 2,455 new ones.

https://twitter.com/OfficialNcoc/status/1398467090118492163

During the past 24 hours (Friday), 2,136 patients have recovered from the deadly virus while the total recoveries stood at 836,702.

As of Saturday, the total count of active cases was recorded at 58,857, while the positivity rate was reported at 4.42 percent.

As many as 315,410 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 338,377 in Punjab, 131,775 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 81,007 in Islamabad, 25,001 in Balochistan, 19,108 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and 5,561 in Gilgit Baltistan.

Moreover, 9,960 individuals have lost their lives to the pandemic so far in Punjab, 5,003 in Sindh, 4,043 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 755 in Islamabad, 539 in Azad Kashmir, 273 in Balochistan and 107 in Gilgit Baltistan.

On Friday, the first case of the Indian coronavirus variant had been detected in Sindh. Sindh minister Dr Pechuho said the South African variant of coronavirus is also rapidly spreading in Karachi. So far, seven cases of the South African variant and one case of the Indian Covid-19 variant have been detected in the province, she added. 

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- WHO worries -

The Covid-19 pandemic will not be over until at least 70 percent of people are vaccinated, the World Health Organization's (WHO) regional director for Europe Hans Kluge tells AFP.

Kluge also says in an interview that one of his main worries is the increased contagiousness of new variants and deplores that the vaccine rollout in Europe is still "too slow".

- Pfizer for kids -

The European Union's drug watchdog approves the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab for 12- to 15-year-olds, the first vaccine to get the green light for children in the bloc.

- India's 'very slow' easing -

Indian authorities announce a "very very slow" easing of the lockdown in the capital New Delhi as infections fall but with an official daily death toll still above 3,600.

- Tokyo emergency extended -

Japan extends a virus state of emergency in Tokyo and other parts of the country until June 20, just over a month before the Olympics.

- Malaysia locks down -

Malaysia announces a "total lockdown" from Tuesday for the first time in over a year as it battles a rapidly escalating coronavirus outbreak that has strained the healthcare system.

- Health passes -

The United States says it is seriously considering creating a vaccine passport for Americans travelling abroad, as Greece becomes one of the first EU countries to unveil the digital health certificate agreed by the bloc.

- Vaccines in Africa -

French President Emmanuel Macron vows during a visit to South Africa to help push for the production of vaccines in Africa, saying intellectual property rights should not hinder the necessary technology transfer.

- Covid on Everest -

Two Icelanders manage to climb Mount Everest despite having contracted coronavirus and even though Nepalese authorities insist there have been no virus cases on the world's highest peak.

- J&J gets UK thumbs up -

Britain approves the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

- US inflation -

US inflation climbed 3.6 percent in April compared to the same month of 2020 as prices recovered from the mass business disruptions caused by the pandemic.

- 3.5 million dead -

The pandemic has killed at least 3,513,088 people worldwide since the virus first emerged in December 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data. 

The US is the worst-affected country with 593,288 deaths, followed by Brazil with 456,674, India with 318,895, Mexico with 222,657 and Britain with 127,758.

The figures are based on reports by the 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.