Out of 863 samples, 181 tested positive for coronavirus, CM Sindh told

KARACHI: Overall 863 samples were tested in the Sindh province for coronavirus and of them, 38 tested positive in Karachi while the remaining 143 confirmed cases were of the pilgrims who arrived from Taftan border in Sukkur, bringing the total provincial tally to 181, ARY NEWS reported.

The figures were given during a briefing to the task force meeting of the Sindh province chaired by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and attended by Mayor Karachi Waseem Akhtar, provincial ministers and other officials.

It was briefed that a total of 573 patients underwent the test in Sindh province of which only 38 tested positive for the virus. “The remaining 535 samples were declared negative,” it said.

Furthermore, 290 samples were collected from the pilgrims who arrived from Taftan Border at a quarantine facility in Sukkur and after tests, it was found that 143 of them were carrying the virus while the remaining 147 samples tested negative.

It was briefed that some suspected cases are also admitted to private hospitals and tests were performed on them. “We are waiting for results from there,” the meeting was briefed.

It was informed that there were 42 scheduled flights at the Jinnah International Airport Karachi on Wednesday of which 16 have been cancelled.

Earlier in the day, around 600 pilgrims from Taftan border crossing reached quarantine center at Labour Colony in Sukkur.

More pilgrims who had returned Pakistan from Iran at Taftan border in Balochistan have reached in more than 15 buses to Sukkur where the Sindh government has established a quarantine center to accommodate them for screening and taking samples for diagnosis of the novel coronavirus.

The convoy had left Taftan yesterday for travel to Sukkur to reach the quarantine center prepared for the pilgrims from Sindh for screening, taking samples and keeping them in isolation.

The samples of the pilgrims will be sent to Karachi for diagnosis of the contagious disease.