Yesterday, Pakistan saw a little spike in newly reported coronavirus cases.
After consistently reporting less than 600 new cases for the past four to five days, 799 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours in the country.
With lockdown restrictions lifted across the country in almost every sector, and especially after the reopening of schools earlier this month this spike in new cases was very much anticipated.
Schools in Pakistan have reopened after a hiatus of six months. With children entering in an unusual world post-Covid where masks and social distancing are mandatory, the containment of the viral disease is an impossible task. Although the federal government has wisely opted for a stepwise resumption of schools and colleges, the scare of a new viral wave is there.
Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood hinted yesterday that some newly reported cases in schools won't make the government shut down schools again any time soon. He tweeted:
The health of students is our first priority and any decision we make will be guided by the advice of the Health Ministry. Having said that 6 months' closure deeply affected the students. The decision to open was taken with great care. Any hasty decision to close will destroy education. 90% of our govt and low fee-paying private schools do not have online teaching facilities. When these institutions close down most students get no education at all. Learning loss is immense and can take years to recover. While health is a priority, this factor must be kept in mind.
The other important factor in a bit of rising in new cases is the increased testing capacity. Yesterday, 42,299 coronavirus tests were conducted, out of which 799 came positive. This means a positivity rate of 1.88 which is still very low as compared to other countries worldwide. It's the first time that Pakistan tested over 40,000 people in a day. This week the number of new cases has risen primarily due to an increase in the number of daily tests as on average almost 35,000 people have been tested daily this past week.
