Pakistan says coronavirus cases could cross one million by July end

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Minister for Planning and Development, Asad Umar, warned on Sunday that COVID-19 cases in the country could double by the end of the month, and even spill over the one million mark by the end of July.
Coronavirus cases in the country surged to almost 140,000 on Sunday with 2,632 deaths so far recorded.
Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad, Umar said over 2,000 patients across the country were already occupying oxygen-supported beds and added the federal government would ensure enhancing the availability of these beds across Pakistan.
Umar’s grim projections came a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan ruled out a comprehensive lockdown in the country.
While addressing a press conference in Lahore on Saturday alongside Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and Punjab’s health minister Dr. Yasmin Rashid, Khan said “selective lockdowns” based on tracking and tracing cases would be imposed as opposed to a sweeping lockdown. Khan added the country’s administration and police could not take on the huge burden of a complete lockdown.
Pakistani authorities had identified and sealed off nearly 1,300 hot spots to contain the rising trajectory of new coronavirus infections.
In March, the country put its entire population of nearly 220 million people under lockdown, but the government has since eased restrictions, saying it was necessary to save the country’s economy. The move has caused a huge surge in cases, with health care facilities in some cities reporting an inability to cope.
Since then, Khan has consistently resisted demands from experts to reinforce the lockdown and authorities are now using the term “smart lockdown” to close shops and markets where confirmed cases have increased in recent weeks.
Khan on Saturday said the public had not been taking government mandated SOP’s seriously so far, and warned that there would be “consequences” going forward if COVID-19 protocols were not followed.