The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), Thursday, decided to extend curbs on schools until mid-February amid the surge in the Covid-19 cases.

According to the NCOC, in the cities and districts with less than 10 percent Covid-19 positivity, the schools will remain open. Schools will be opened for the vaccinated students with age group of more than 12 years old.

However, in the cities where the percentage of Covid-19 cases is over 10 percent, students will be allowed in schools on alternative days. Half of the students with the age group of less than 12 will be allowed in schools each day. Moreover, in cities with corona positivity over 10 percent, only over 12 years of age students will be allowed in schools. Educational institutions will have to take all the possible steps to ensure the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Meanwhile, Covid-19 data released by the NCOC here on Thursday said that Pakistan in the past 24 hours detected 7,539 more Covid-19 infections by carrying out 63,272 tests. In the past 24 hours, the country recorded 11.91 coronavirus positivity ratio. The country also reported 25 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, which is the highest number of casualties since October 14, 2021. Since the pandemic outbreak, Pakistan has reported a total 1,393,539 Covid-19 infections and 29,162 Covid-19 deaths. The country has reported 1,272,871 coronavirus recoveries.

Since the start of the fifth Covid-19 wave, the number of active coronavirus cases are on the rise, which before January 2022 were below 20,000 mark now have surged to 91,854 infections, of which, 1,240 are in critical condition. In terms of Covid-19 infections, Sindh with 533,496 cases is on top, of which, 2,488 cases were reported in the past 24 hours, followed by Punjab with 469,540 cases, of which, 1,843 cases were detected in the past 24 hours, KPK 187,983 of which 1,446 cases were reported in the past 24 hours, ICT with 122,098 cases of which 1,285 reported in the past 24 hours, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) with 36,082 cases of which 348 cases detected in the past 24 hours, Balochistan with 34,127 cases of which 95 cases were registered in the past 24 hours, and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) with 10,557 cases of which 31 cases were reported in the past 24 hours.

In terms of Covid-19 deaths, Punjab is the most-affected province with 13,126 deaths of which seven deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours, followed by Sindh with 7,765 deaths of which 12 deaths recorded in the past 24 hours, KPK with 5,986 deaths of which six casualties were reported in the past 24 hours, ICT with 979 deaths, AJK with 752 deaths, Balochistan with 367 deaths, and GB with 187 deaths.

This report was first published in Business Recorder on Jan 28, 2022.