Coronavirus Update: Less concentration in Karachi than rest of Sindh

By Mukhtar Alam
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Although Karachi has been reporting the maximum number of new coronavirus positive cases almost daily in the province its overall rate of virus infection was found less than what the remaining districts of Sindh have so far reported collectively, it emerged on April 23 when the health authorities confirmed detection of another 298 cases, with four more deaths due to the virus across the province. 

The Sindh government conducted 33,028 tests for COVID-19 since February 26 when the first case of the virus infection was reported here, out of which 3,671 gave positive cases, with a total 73 deaths. 

In the case of Karachi it was learnt that the authorities conducted a total 26,741 tests for coronavirus, of which 2,449 (9.15%) were detected positive while 6,287 people were tested for the virus in districts other than those of Karachi division, which resulted in 1,222 (19.43%) coronavirus positive cases.

The experts attributed this significant difference in the infection rates of Karachi and the remaining districts to major detection of positive cases in pilgrims at Sukkur and members of tableeghi jamat at Hyderabad. 

The overall infection rate for Sindh was found 11.11%, which was 2% higher than that of Karachi, which reported 242 new COVID-19 cases on April 23. 

According to the official data, 25 new cases of coronavirus infection were detected in Sukkur, followed by Shaheed Benazirabad (14), Larkana (11), Dadu (2), while Sujawal, Sanghar, Ghotki, Khairpur contributed one new case each. 

During the last 24 hours, ending at 8 am on April 23, four persons including a woman lost their lives due to coronavirus infection in SIndh. A woman of 40 years and two men, aged 70 and 72 years respectively, died at Karachi, while a 45-year-old man died at Shaheed Benazirabad. 

As per the official data, the district-wise total Covid-19 cases remained as Karachi (2,449), Sukkur (366), Hyderabad (235), Khairpur (166), Ghotki (122), Larkana (87), Shaheed Benazirabad (82), Tando Mohammad Khan (31), Naushehro Feroze (19), Sanghar (18), Jamshoro (14), Dadu (14), Jacobbad (11), Badin (11), Kashmore (9), Sujawal (9), Shikarpur (6), Mirpurkhas (6), Tando Allahyar (4), Thatta (4), Tharparkar (4), Umerkot (3) and Kamber Shahdadkot (1). 

In the meantime, the Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah, inaugurated a separately developed coronavirus testing facility at the Aga Khan University Hospital through a video link on April 23. 

The hospital has developed a comprehensive facility to provide free of cost tele-screen and test patients in a set-up that is separate from the outpatient clinics and main hospital, said a personnel of the hospital, adding that testing of the selected persons will be done on payment at the single modular booths.