• Friday, March 29, 2024

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Pakistan’s Covid-19 cases rise to 34,336

(Photo: Luis Alvarenga/Getty Images/Getty Images).

By: RadhakrishnaNS

 

Pakistan has reported more than 2,000 new COVID-19 cases, taking the number of infections to over 34,000, while 31 more people have succumbed to the coronavirus, health officials said on Saturday, amidst the easing of lockdown restrictions.

The Pakistan government announced last week that it would begin a phased lifting of the lockdown due to its effect on the economy and the workforce. The Ministry of National Health Services said that 2,255 cases were confirmed positive on Tuesday after 11,848 tests were conducted.

Markets across Pakistan were teeming on Monday after opening up for the first time in over a month as the country began to lift its lockdown despite a rise in the rate of coronavirus infections.

Pakistan announced last week that it would begin a phased lifting of its lockdown because of the effect it was having on the economy and an impoverished workforce.

Public transport remains shut, but factories and offices have been allowed to resume operations. Restrictions on mosque attendance had already been lifted before last week’s announcement.

“We opened today after almost two months; I am almost bankrupt and owe workers their salaries,” said Muhammad Sattar, a garment shop owner in one of the busiest commercial areas of Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and financial capital.

Areas around wholesale markets in Karachi saw heavy traffic jams, and there were also big crowds in the commercial centres of the provincial capitals of Lahore and Quetta.

Pakistan Weekly

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