Islamabad: Pakistan has announced the extension of limited COVID-19 restrictions in virus hotspots till February 15 as the daily infections continue to peak driven by the infectious Omicron variant.
Pakistan recorded 8,183 cases of coronavirus on Friday, its highest single-day cases since the start of the pandemic in February 2020, pushing for strengthened measures. As many as 7,963 cases and 27 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), which oversees the pandemic response, said that existing non-pharmaceutical interventions, which were imposed till January 31, have now been extended till mid-February while a fresh review will be conducted on February 10 to assess the virus situation in the country.
COVID-19 alert level heightened
Pakistan has tightened restrictions in cities where the coronavirus positivity rate is above 10 per cent amid the Omicron-driven fifth wave. NCOC announced new curbs including a complete ban on indoor dining and weddings in COVID-19 hotspots. Despite the spike in cases, the government has said that it would “refrain from taking steps that would harm business and economic activity.”
“Omicron variant continues spreading countrywide,” the NCOC said in a statement, requesting citizens to get fully vaccinated, get the booster shot and follow mask-wearing and social distancing rules.
Positivity ratio
The highest positivity rate of 29 per cent was reported in Peshawar followed by 27 per cent in Karachi, 20 per cent in Lahore and 17 per cent in Islamabad. In the last 24 hours, 1,555 people tested positive in Islamabad capital territory where the city admin-istration closed 14 educational institutes last day. Since January 1, more than 130 ed-ucational institutions including 92 schools have been sealed where the students and staff were found infected in the capital city, according to Islamabad district health of-ficer Dr Zaeem Zia.
Over one-third of Pakistan’s 220 million population is now fully vaccinated. Nearly 102 million have received at least one dose, according to NCOC data.
