ISLAMABAD: The COVID-19 has claimed 39 more lives in Pakistan during the past 24 hours, lifting the overall death toll to 21,913.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) data, the country’s caseload climbed to 945,184 after 1,043 more people tested positive for the deadly virus during this period.

The positivity rate was recorded at 1.90 per cent.

The new infections emerged when 54,647 tests were conducted during the said period.

With 1,410 recoveries over the past 24 hours, the total number of recovered patients has reached 888,505, while the total number of tests to diagnose the pandemic is recorded at 14,026,336.

Punjab remains the worst-hit province as 344,641 cases have been reported so far since the pandemic outbreak. Sindh follows with 330,552 cases, according to the NCOC dashboard.

136,663 COVID-19 cases have been detected in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 82,278 in Islamabad, 26,466 Balochistan, 19,868 Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and  5,759 cases have been recorded in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has made a bulk purchase deal of coronavirus vaccines with China, quoting sources.

Pakistan has made various agreements of buying over 27.5 million vaccine doses of China made vaccines, the sources at National Institute of Health (NIH) said.

The doses of Sinopharm, Sinovac and CanSino vaccines being purchased under the vaccine procurement agreements, according to sources.

“Under the procurement agreements raw material and prepared coronavirus vaccines being purchased from the Chinese companies,” sources said.

Pakistan has signed a deal of the procurement of 23 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine, according to sources. Sinopharm will provide vaccine consignments to Pakistan in phases till December this year.