Pakistan's coronavirus death toll rises by 55

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AA) - Pakistan's COVID-19 death toll reached 10,047 on Wednesday as 55 more patients succumbed to the novel disease in the last 24 hours, the Health Ministry said.

The South Asian country of 220 million people also registered 2,155 new infections, raising the total caseload to 477,240. More than 36,000 tests were conducted over the past day.

While 430,113 patients have recovered to date, 2,219 are still in critical condition.

To contain the virus surge in winter, authorities have re-imposed lockdowns in virus-affected zones, along with a general ban on public meetings and rallies.

Last week, Dr Faisal Sultan, special assistant to the prime minister on health, said Pakistan will receive coronavirus vaccines sometime between January and March next year.