Islamabad: Minister Asad Umar, spearheading the nation’s fight against COVID, warned Tuesday that Pakistan “will lose both lives and livelihoods” if people continue to violate the coronavirus guidelines.
In a tweet, he warned of “serious consequences” of suffering and death if COVID guidelines were not followed. “We are committing a collective blunder by recklessly ignoring all SOPs (standard operating procedures) and the results of which have started to show” in the form of increased fatalities, Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar warned in a tweet. He said that at least 12 people succumbed to the virus during the previous week, which is a 140 per cent increase compared to a couple of weeks ago.
People stopped wearing masks
Federal Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari regretted that “people have stopped wearing masks in all public places, especially markets, offices, restaurants.” She said in a tweet that “It is an act of extreme selfishness not to wear masks as it endangered not only yourself but also your family, associates, workers and everyone you come into contact with”.
Pakistan witnessing slight increase in cases
Pakistan recorded a total of 440 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the tally of active COVID-19 cases in the country to 9384. At least five coronavirus patients lost their lives during the last day, according to the official statistics. Pakistan has so far conducted 4.1 million COVID-19 tests.
The country which reported its first virus case on February 26 reached the peak in mid-June when 6,825 cases were reported in a single day after which the country started witnessing a surprising gradual decline. Pakistan lifted most COVID-19 restrictions by mid-August.
Experts have blamed the sudden rise in COVID-19 cases on the lax attitude of citizens as the government restrictions slackened. Health officials say that the reopening of educational institutes without strict measures in place is another reason of the resurgence of coronavirus cases.
PM Khan warns of winter spike
The minister’s warning comes a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan cautioned the nation against a possible second wave of the contagious disease in winter as the country’s daily death toll has crossed into double digits since September. Khan directed the authorities to strengthen measures to prevent the spread of the disease and urged the people to wear masks in public.
Khan expressed fears that the cities with a high level of pollution such as Faisalabad, Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Gujranwala might witness an increase in COVID cases during the second wave of the pandemic.
Recent studies of COVID-19 in several countries have identified links between air pollution and death rates. A Harvard University study indicates that an increase of only one microgram per cubic metre in PM 2.5 - dangerous air pollutants - is associated with an 8 per cent increase in the COVID-19 death rate.
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