ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government on Sunday warned of the beginning of another COVID-19 wave in the country amid rising cases following the emergence of the Omicron variant.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) Chief and Planning Minister Asad Umar took to his official Twitter handle and stated that genome sequencing has shown a rising proportion of Omicron, "particularly in Karachi".
"Clear evidence now of a beginning of another covid wave which has been expected for last few weeks. Genome sequencing shows a rising proportion of omicron cases particularly in Karachi. Remember: wearing a mask is your best protection," he tweeted.
He urged people to wear masks, adding that it was their "best protection".
Umar's tweet comes a few days after the National Institute of Health (NIH) confirmed 75 cases of the Omicron strain of Covid-19 across the country, two weeks after the first case was reported in Karachi.
The local government imposed a 15-day micro-smart lockdown in Karachi's District East on Saturday after the emergence of at least 12 cases of Omicron variant in the area.
As the local transmission of the most transmissible variant of Covid-19, Omicron, is now being reported from all across the country, Pakistan's positivity rate remained over 1 per cent for the second consecutive day on Saturday, Dawn reported.