Pakistan on Wednesday reported 805 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours with a 4.69% positivity ratio.

According to the National Institute of Health, 17,150 tests were conducted on Tuesday(yesterday). Out of those, 805 came out positive. One person died of the deadly virus, while 168 patients are in critical care.

Pakistan last recorded such high number of cases nearly four months ago. On March 4, the country reported 796 cases after which the numbers witnessed a steady decline. However, the last two weeks have seen a steady upward climb, as the Omicron variant continues to spread. On Saturday, the NIH said that Covid cases were up to 818.

With the resurgence in Covid19 cases in Pakistan, the Ministry of National Health Services has issued guidelines.

Precautionary measures

• Social distancing
• Wear a mask
• Get vaccinated (booster dose)
• Follow SOPs in mosques and avoid crowded places

The country’s health minister has warned that public gatherings could see cases spike while calling for maintaining SOPs during major events including rallies and Eid prayers.

Abdul Qadir Patel addresses a conference in Islamabad

Addressing an event in Islamabad, the health minister thanked the USAID for its constant support to Pakistan during the Covid19 pandemic.

“We are grateful to USAID for providing Pakistan state-of-the-art technology and for its role during the pandemic days in terms of supply chain and vaccines,” said the health minister.

“I ensure you sir [Donald Blome], we are people who will never forget. We are not thankless people,” he added.

Patel announced some changes to the health department, including changing the name of Central Health Department (CHE) to Border Health Services (BHS). The new department will connect border entry and exit point data with National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).

The people entering or exiting Pakistan will be marked for vaccinations from Covid-19, yellow fever and polio.