Over 8% positivity rate recorded in 26 cities
The National Command and Operations Center on Monday, March 29, revealed that 26 cities of Punjab, Peshawar and Azad Jammu and Kashmir reported a COVID-19 case positivity rate of over 8%. These cities include Islamabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Sialkot, Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Gujrat, Bahawalpur, Toba Tek Singh, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Mandi Bahauddin, Multan, Okara, Rahimyar Khan, Peshawar, Swat, Nowshera, Dir Lower, Malakand, Swabi, Charsadda, Haripur, Muzaffarabad, Mirpur and Kotli.
On the same day, 100 patients succumbed to the novel coronavirus disease with Punjab suffering the highest number of casualties, 92 of which were admitted to hospital and 8 of whom were on ventilators. 4,084 fresh infections at a positivity rate of 8.83% and 2,081 recoveries at a recovery rate of 90.5% were reported on Monday, taking the total number of active cases in the country to 48,566. According to official data, people aged 20 to 40 were most susceptible to contracting the virus however patients aged 60 and above reported the highest casualty rate.
Lockdown in Punjab districts with over 12% positivity
The Punjab Government has decided to impose strict lockdowns in districts exceeding 12% case positivity rate from April 1 to April 11, as Punjab continues to report the highest number of infections since the outbreak of the UK COVID-19 variant in the country. The provincial government has already restricted mass transit, ordered the closure of markets by 6 PM with a mandatory two-day weekend break, and banned indoor and outdoor events.
However, industries, good transport and construction work have been exempted from ongoing restrictions, so long as mandated SOP are in place, as the government has expressed its reluctance to take measures that may drive up unemployment.
229 Lahoris booked for flouting SOP
Lahore police registered 124 cases in the past 24 hours against citizens for failing to adhere to social distancing and continuing commercial activities long past the stipulated time. Another 105 complaints were lodged against people for not wearing masks in public spaces – most of the violations were observed in the Walled City.