The Sindh government wants to extend the lockdown across the province by one week after April 14, said Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Thursday, as calls for the provincial government to resume economic activities increase.
The chief minister was speaking to senior journalists where he said that the Sindh government wanted all provinces in the country to take unified steps regarding the lockdown.
A lockdown has been imposed in the province since last month as local transmission of the novel coronavirus has increased in Sindh. As of today, Sindh has reported 1,128 confirmed cases of the infection with 21 deaths.
“The Sindh cabinet will take the final decision about the lockdown,” he was quoted as saying. “We are preparing SOPs for everything including industries and factories,” he added.
The chief minister said that closures across the province will not be lifted at once but through a systematic process. “If factories are opened, minimum number of employees will work in them,” he said.
Murad said that shopping malls will remain closed. He said that the business community was exerting pressure on the government to resume economic activity while small traders have supported the lockdown measures.
Saying that allowing the construction sector to keep operating will can contribute to the spread of the coronavirus, Murad urged the federal government to extend the lockdown for an additional week.
“If the federal government extends the lockdown for an additional week, the situation can be brought under control,” he said.
The chief minister expressed concerns that the virus can spread through the distribution of rations as thousands were assembling at places to receive them.
“We have reservations with the federal government over several issues,” he said.
Meanwhile, Murad Ali Shah said that despite efforts to contain its spread, people in Karachi’s slum areas have started testing positive for COVID-19 because they failed to observe social distancing as advised by experts.
He added that seven members of a family including two children living in a slum area in Karachi’s central district have tested positive for the virus.
Shah urged the people in slums to get ration or cash when it was distributed in their areas but to avoid crowding, otherwise they “will not only be infected but would carry the virus back to their homes and get their family members infected”.
Murad Ali Shah also refuted media reports claiming that three people died in the province due to hunger.
The chief minister clarified that two of the people had committed suicide due to domestic issues while the third person had been sick for the past 15 days and his death was because of an illness.
Separately, a draft of the Sindh Coronavirus Emergency Relief Ordinance was sent to the governor for approval by the law department.
Under the law, people worst affected by the virus will be provided financial relief.
The draft also covers orders for private schools across the province to adhere to a 20% reduction in fees. “No school will be allowed to charge more than 80% of the fee,” it said.
Moreover, relief in the utility bills for water, electricity and gas will also be provided to residential consumers and businesses.
According to the ordinance, landlords will not be allowed to take rent valued under Rs50,000 for a temporary period. This rent will, however, be payable later.
Rent up to Rs100,000 will be slashed by half. For rent more than Rs100,000, payment will have to be made in full.
Furthermore, those consuming up to 155 units of power will be exempted from paying, while those consuming 200 units will have to pay up to 25% of the charges. For a 300-unit consumption, consumers will have to pay 50% of the charges.
Separately, Sindh Minister Saeed Ghani has warned of severe consequences of further spread of coronavirus pandemic, saying that neither any life nor any employment will be left if the country face spike in the number of infections.
Saeed Ghani, while talking to a private news channel on Thursday criticised that school owners have no right to question anyone for his disease or details of unemployment. He added that the owners of private will have to give 20 per cent discount on tuition fees.
The minister announced that schools will not be reopened just after April 14 as the provincial government will reduce lockdown in phases. He detailed that schools had been closed in the first phase but it will be allowed to resume academic sessions in the last phase after lifting restrictions.
