COVID-19 cases declining across Pakistan’s Punjab province — health official

LAHORE: A senior health official in Pakistan’s Punjab province said on Sunday there had been a “significant decline” in coronavirus cases across the province, local media reported. 
Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, reported one death and 57 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, according to official figures. 
“Special standard operating procedures (SOPs) have been issued for various sectors to bring about a further decrease in the virus cases,” the Express Tribune newspaper quoted Punjab health care secretary Imran Sikandar Baloch as saying. 
The official also urged the general public to “maintain social distancing, wear masks and contact 1033 helpline for any guidance or complaints.” 
Pakistan recorded two more fatalities and 358 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, according to official data. 
The South Asian nation also continues to report cases of the omicron variant. The strain was first detected in South Africa last month and within a few weeks of its discovery has spread across nearly 90 countries in the world. 
On Saturday, Pakistan’s federal capital reported its first case of the new strain, a senior official announced, saying the patient had traveled to Islamabad from Karachi. 
Pakistan reported its first omicron case in Karachi on December 13, though many other people were suspected to have contracted the variant in other parts of the country, including Balochistan. 
Last week, Pakistani Planning Minister Asad Umar requested eligible Pakistani nationals to get themselves vaccinated after the emergence of omicron cases in the country. He said the spread of the new variant across the world had made it “even more urgent” to increase the pace of Pakistan’s vaccination campaign. 
So far, 92,086,806 people have received their first dose of anti-COVID vaccines in Pakistan, while 65,149,948 have been fully inoculated, official data shows.