Islamabad: Pakistan on Monday reintroduced several restrictions in COVID-19 hotspots as the country is grappling with the infectious third wave of coronavirus.
The government has banned all indoor and outdoor social, cultural, political, sports, and other events in cities and districts where the positivity rate is above 8 per cent. Partial lockdown has been enforced in COVID hotspots in the Punjab province.
The new restrictions were put into effect on March 29 to contain the deadly new wave of COVID-19 in Pakistan. “Based on continuing increase in disease spread and fast pace at which hospital fill up is taking place, particularly critical COVID patients, [the government] decided to further tighten restrictions,” Minister Asad Umar said.
Prime Minister Imran Khan has ruled out a complete lockdown and has decided to stick to the smart lockdown strategy despite surging coronavirus cases. Khan has repeatedly called for ensuring a balance between virus control measures and livelihoods.
He advised the public to follow the measures and wear masks, warning that the current wave of coronavirus is more dangerous. “The third wave is much more intense than the first two. I advise you all to be extremely cautious,” Khan said in a televised statement. “Hospitals are filling. People are being put on ventilators. God forbid, our hospitals will reach maximum capacity if it continues to spread at the current rate,” the prime minister warned. Khan, who contracted the coronavirus last week, is feeling better now.
Partial lockdown
Punjab government has decided to enforce lockdowns in districts with over 12 per cent virus positivity rate from April 1 to 11 to contain the spread of the disease, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar announced.
The districts of Punjab with a high positivity ratio include Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Multan, Sargodha and Sialkot.
The restrictions include limited public life, closure of schools, ban on all gathering, wedding and events, closure of metro bus service in Lahore, and 6 pm time limit for commercial activities.
The limitations, however, do not apply to the construction, transport, goods and industrial sectors which would continue to operate as per regular according to standard operating procedures (SOPs), Buzdar said.
Key COVID-19 restrictions in Punjab
· Ban on all gatherings, wedding, all cultural and sports events.
· Markets and shopping malls to close at 6pm.
· Businesses to observe closure on weekends.
· Mass transit transport services have been banned. No restriction on private transport.
· Parks and other recreational places closed.
· Ban on indoor and outdoor dining. Only takeaway and home delivery services allowed.
A total of 125 vaccination centres have been set up in the Punjab province where 54,885 health workers have received both doses of the vaccine while nearly 151,447 people over the age of 60 have also been vaccinated.
Pakistan on Monday reported at least 4,525 new coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours. At least 41 people lost their lives to coronavirus on March 28. The nationwide tally of the number of cases reached 659,116 and 14,256 total deaths, according to official data.
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