Coronavirus hits new height by claiming 74 lives overnight: Murad.

KARACHI -- Chief Minister (CM) Syed Murad Ali Shah here on Monday said that the coronavirus had hit new heights by claiming 74 lives overnight, lifting the death toll to 1,343 while 1,539 new cases emerged when 8,464 samples tested positive for Covid-19.

In a statement issued here from the CM House, he said: 'This is the highest figure so far since the first death stemming from Covid-19 was reported on March 19.' He said the death rate increased from 1.5 per cent to 1.6pc, offering condolence to the bereaved families.

The CM said that 8,464 samples were tested against which 1,539 new cases of the coronavirus were detected, constituting 19.6pc detection rate.

He said the provincial government had conducted so far 443,757 tests which detected 81,985 cases, of them 45,616 patients recovered, including 1,093 overnight. 'The recovery rate comes to 55.6 per cent which is quite encouraging,' he said.

According to the CM, currently there are 35,026 patients under treatment, of them 33,482 in home isolation, 88 at isolation centres and 1,456 at different hospitals.

He said that...