The third wave of coronavirus is dominating all parts of Pakistan but especially Punjab is most severely hit.

3,495 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the last 24 hours in Pakistan. This daily tally is the highest in over 3 months. The last time a bigger number of new infections confirmed in a day was way back on 6th December when 3,795 new cases were detected.

Pakistan's latest Covid-19 statistics as provided by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) are as follows:

CONFIRMED CASES: 615,810   
New cases (Last 24 hours): 3,495     

DEATHS: 13,717    
New Deaths (Last 24 hours): 61   

RECOVERED: 577,501     
Recoveries in the last 24 hours: 1,634    

TOTAL TESTS: 9,648,242     
Tests conducted in the last 24 hours: 44,377  

CRITICAL CASES: 2,062   

ACTIVE CASES: 24,592   

The past couple of weeks has seen Covid infections surge in Pakistan as the country has been reporting over 2,000 new cases on average daily. The province of Punjab is hit hardest. Out of the 3,495 new cases confirmed yesterday, 1,824 belonged to Punjab. This means the most populous region of the country was responsible for over 52% of cases.

Out of the total 24,592 active coronavirus cases present in the country, 11,021 cases (around 45% of the total) are in Punjab. This spike in coronavirus cases has prompted the government of Punjab to close down schools, colleges, universities, and to implement strict lockdown restrictions on restaurants, markets, and shopping malls. The number of cases is also increasing in other provinces and they too are implementing 'Smart lockdown' in COVID hotspots that is in the areas where more cases are present.

In other COVID-related news, Pakistan has acquired 500,000 Sinopharm vaccines from a Chinese pharmaceutical company. This was confirmed by the Special Assistant to PM Imran Khan on health Dr. Faisal Sultan yesterday via Twitter. He tweeted:

The next batch of Sinopharm vaccine was received today. These 500,000 doses will ensure smooth continuation of our vaccination drive, currently underway for senior citizens. We're grateful to China for their support. This gesture is a testament to our long-standing friendship.

Pakistan's vaccination drive has been underway since early February. In the first phase, only healthcare providers were registered for the jabs but now the registrations are open for the elderly aged above 60 too. Thousands of elderly are being vaccinated across the country daily nowadays but the numbers are nowhere near it should be.