ISLAMABAD, FEB 01 DNA) – Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar has tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Monday.

After being diagnosed with the COVID-19, the industries minister has quarantined himself at his residence and has appealed to the masses to pray for his recovery. The federal government has decided to launch a countrywide anti-COVID-19 vaccination drive from February 3

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), a special aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) carrying o.5 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine landed at Nur Khan Airbase today.

All measures for anti-Covid-19 vaccination drive have been finalised. The government has decided to swiftly distribute the China-gifted vaccine to the federating units to start the vaccination process.

The Covid-19 vaccine that arrived at Nur Khan Airbase this morning will be shifted to the Expanded Programme on Immunisation’s (EPI) storage in Islamabad from where it will be transported to the provinces.

The vaccine will be transported to Sindh and Balochistan and Gilgit Baltisitan by air while to Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by road.

It is pertinent to mention here that the coronavirus claimed 26 more lives as another 1,615 people tested positive for the deadly disease during the past 24 hours across Pakistan.

According to the latest update released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 1,615 new infections surfaced after 34,785 samples were tested during this period.

The total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country has soared to 546,428 with addition of the fresh cases while the countrywide death toll jumped to 11,683. There are a total of 33,493 active cases as 501,252 people have recuperated. = DNA

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