Pakistan's COVID-19 count surges past 30,000, toll rises to 661

As the coronavirus cases in Pakistan crossed 30,000, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Sunday said that the government would use technology to trace the coronavirus cases and identify virus hotspots throughout the country to enforce a "smart lockdown."

Dawn reported that while speaking to reporters at the National Command and Operation Centre in Islamabad, Umar said that according to available data, Punjab was enforcing smart lockdown in some 169 areas while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was enforcing smart lockdown in 177 areas.

The number of coronavirus in Pakistan surged to 30,416 while the toll has risen to 661. Out of these, Sindh has reported 11,480 cases of coronavirus while Punjab has reported 11,093 cases so far. Besides this, 2,017 cases have been reported from Balochistan as well.

In Sindh, the number of policemen affected by coronavirus has risen to 151 after 36 more tested positive over the last two days, a spokesperson for Sindh police confirmed, according to Dawn.

This came on a day when Pakistan was ranked by the John Hopkins University as the 20th most-affected country by the novel coronavirus.

( With inputs from ANI )