With the government planning to further ease lockdown restrictions, the countrywide tally of coronavirus cases has seen a spike over the past few days.
According to the Punjab Health Department, a total of 1,533 cases of the novel coronavirus were reported in the province in the first nine days of Ramazan. Of them, 526 cases were recorded in the first five days of the month, while near double – 1007 cases – in the last four days.
University of Health and Sciences (UHS) Vice Chancellor Professor Javed Akram weighing in on the current situation of the coronavirus expressed the apprehension that Pakistan may see a record rise in Covid-19 cases in the days to come.
He said the number of cases of local transmission surged in the wake of the government’s move to ease lockdown restrictions as 80 per cent of the total cases reported on daily basis are locally transmitted.
The professor said a complete family is falling victim to the deadly virus due to a rise in locally transmitted cases. He called for the government to allow people affected by Covid-19 to isolate themselves in their houses to help them get over their fear. It merits mentioning that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had lately predicted that coronavirus cases might rise to 200,000 in the country.
Lockdown relaxation increases local transmission of Covid-19
