ISLAMABAD: Early optimism that South Asia might have dodged the worst ravages of the coronavirus pandemic has disappeared as soaring infection rates turn the densely populated region into a global hot spot.

After several months trailing the US and western Europe, cases of COVID-19 are surging across South Asia - home to almost a quarter of the world's population - where the virus is wreaking havoc on fragile medical systems and underfunded health agencies are pushed to breaking point.