ISLAMABAD: As over 70 per cent coronavirus cases across the country are being reported from Karachi alone, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Tuesday held a meeting with Sindh health officials to formulate a strategy at provincial level.

While the national positivity rate was 2.42pc, it was as high as 9.21pc in Karachi.

At least two Covid-19 patients died and 333 new cases were reported from across the country during the past one day, besides 85 patients were in critical condition, official data shows.

240 of 333 new cases reported from Karachi

According to a statement, on a direction of Minister for National Health Services Abdul Qadir Patel, an NCOC team arranged the meeting with Sindh health officials to formulate a strategy at provincial level amid slight rise in Covid-19 cases in Karachi. The meeting discussed increasing testing, contact tracing and implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions, especially mask wearing at all crowded places, and domestic travel by air, railways or road, the statement added.

Of the 333 reported cases, 240 were reported from Karachi, the NCOC data shows.

Also, 2,808 patients were reportedly in quarantine in the country and as many as 2,170 (77pc) of them were in quarantine only in Karachi.

The situation in the port city can also be assessed by looking at the figures of hospitalised patients. Half of patients on low flow of oxygen, i.e. 10, were in Karachi. Similarly, 17 of the 35 patients on high flow of oxygen were in the city. Also, two of the three patients on ventilators in the country were in Karachi.

More than 50pc of new admissions were also from Karachi, where nine patients were hospitalised during the past one day. Only eight patients were admitted in rest of the country.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2022