ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of National Health Services today (Friday) has dismissed rumours that the new strain of the novel coronavirus, identified in Britain, has been detected in Pakistan.
According to a statement issued on Twitter, the ministry said the situation in Pakistan is being closely monitored like all the passengers arriving from the United Kingdom are being evaluated.
“As of today, no such variant of the SARS-CoV-2 has been detected in Pakistan,” it read, adding, “The National Institute of Health is sensitive and on alert regarding this new strain for timely detection and addressal.”
Important Announcement Regarding The New Variant of SARS-CoV-2 pic.twitter.com/bQBLp9RGR4
— Ministry of National Health Services, Pakistan (@nhsrcofficial) December 25, 2020
Meanwhile, the national tally of total active COVID-19 cases in Pakistan on Friday reached 38,511 with 2,152 more people testing positive for the deadly virus and 1,824 people recovering from coronavirus during last 24 hours.
According to the latest update issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 85 coronavirus patients, 77 of whom were under treatment in hospital and eight in their homes or quarantines died on Thursday.
A new variant of the pandemic SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is spreading rapidly in Britain and prompting high levels of concern in the world with some countries, including Pakistan, imposing travel ban on UK.
The strain, referred to by some experts as the B.1.1.7 lineage, is not the first new variant of the pandemic virus to emerge, but is said to be up to 70% more transmissible than the previously dominant strain.
