RAWALPINDI: A total of 293 patients of Covid-19 recovered on Sunday in Rawalpindi, while 36 more tested positive for the disease and one person died.

So far, 16,363 people have been tested for Covid-19 in Rawalpindi district between March 20 and July 11, of which 10,126 tested negative and 6,240 tested positive. There have been 265 deaths and 4,678 people have recovered.

According to the Punjab government’s data on Rawalpindi district, most of the Covid-19 patients in this area reported between March 20 and July 10 have been between the ages of 11 and 40, with 2,678 in this age group. Another 1,692 patients were aged between 51 and 90, while 880 patients were 41 to 50 years old and 360 children between the ages of zero and 10 also contracted the disease.

The highest number of recoveries has been among 11 to 40-year-olds with 2,172 so far, followed by 1,075 recovered patients between the ages of 51 and 100, 665 between the ages of 41 and 50 and 294 children.

The highest number of deaths has been reported among patients aged between 51 and 100 with 195 so far, followed by 45 deaths in the 41 to 50 age group and 23 in the 11 to 40 age group. One infant has also died of Covid-19.

According to the data, 4,807 confirmed cases were reported from Rawalpindi city and its cantonment areas, followed by 250 from Gujar Khan, 260 from Taxila, 78 from Kahuta, 60 from Kotli Sattian, 50 from Murree and 42 from Kallar Syedan.

There are currently 465 patients in hospital and 832 isolated in their homes. Another 313 suspected patients have been admitted to Rawalpindi’s four hospitals and their samples have been sent to the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the Benazir Bhutto Hospital and Holy Family Hospital laboratories for testing.

Also on Sunday, the district administration sealed 17 shops for operating despite the weekend lockdown and imposed Rs20,000 in fines on store owners.

Eight vehicles were also impounded and the Regional Transport Authority fined public transport Rs23,000 for violating standard operating procedures (SOP). Six vehicle owners were also issued tickets.

Commissioner retired Capt Mohammad Mehmood told Dawn that the district administration has been asked to make arrangements to implement standard operating procedures in cattle markets, which will open on July 15.

He feared that there would be a surge in Covid-19 cases over Eidul Azha if precautions are not taken.

“People and shopkeepers did not adopt safety measures in markets after Eidul Fitr, because of which the number of patients in Rawalpindi division increased,” he said. He added that 730 and 776 cases were reported in the two weeks after Eidul Fitr between June 1 and June 19.

Mr Mehmood said that 7,438 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in the division between March 20 and July 11, including 6,240 in Rawalpindi, 516 in Attock, 407 in Jhelum and 270 in Chakwal. Of these, 5,638 patients have recovered - 4,678 in Rawalpindi, 381 in Jhelum, 312 in Attock and 210 in Chakwal.

Taxila

As many as 11 more cases of Covid-19 were reported in Attock, during the last 24 hours, taking the number of confirmed cases to 516.

District Focal Person for Covid-19 Dr Asif Arbab Niazi said: “Two of the new patients are fromAttock, eight from Hazro and one from Fatehjang. Number of active patients in the district is now 187, out of which 105 patients are in Attock. Six of them are hospitalised and 99 are isolated in their houses; 47 patients are in Hazro and all of them are under home isolation, 17 patients are in Fatehjang and four of them are hospitalised while 13 are under home isolation, four patients are in Hassanabdal and all of them are under home isolation, nine patients are in Pindigheb; one of them is hospitalised while eight are under home isolation. Five patients are in Jand, all of whom are under home isolation.”

Mr Niazi added that the number of suspected cases in the district rose to 3,812 while screening of 7,393 persons was carried out. Of them, 3,027 tested negative. “Results of 269 suspected patients are awaited. 11 patients are admitted in the district, 10 are confirmed while one is a suspectedpatient; seven of them are in critical condition. Out of 516 positive patients,176 are home isolated and all are asymptomatic while 312 patients have recovered. Safe burial of 52 suspected and positive patients, who died in various other districts, was carried out in the district.

In Taxila, eight persons tested positive, raising the total number to 382 on Sunday. Deputy District Officer (health) Dr Sara Qadeer said: “Newly detected cases all belong to various urban parts of Wah including Officers Colony and Gulshan Colony, all of them are home isolated. Among them, four belong to the same family from Gulshan Colony, who got infected from an already tested positive patient. So far, 93 patients have recovered in the area.”

Responding to a question, she said that 253 positive patients were kept quarantined at their residences where health authorities were regularly monitoring their condition while 18 are admitted in various hospitals.— Additional reporting by Amjad Iqbal

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2020