The Punjab government on Saturday ordered a virtual lockdown in the province until Tuesday morning as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to 730 after new cases were reported from throughout the country.
“Starting 9pm Saturday night, all shopping malls, markets and public places will be closed in Punjab until 9am on Tuesday,” Chief Minister Usman Buzdar announced. “Pharmacies, petrol pumps and grocery stores will be allowed to remain open during this period,” he said, and called upon the public to self-isolate for the next two days. He also announced that a ‘coronavirus emergency ordinance’ will be introduced on Tuesday.
The Sindh government is also gearing up to take strict actions by going as far as imposing a province-wide lockdown to contain the spread of novel coronavirus, as provincial cases rose to 396 on Saturday.
Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah discussed several options in this connection with Sindh Governor Imran Ismail, Karachi Corps Commander, Sindh Rangers DG and Sindh IGP to ensure full implementation of the government’s decision of keeping people at their homes, provincial government’s spokesperson Murtaza Wahab said. The government will ensure that grocery and medical shops remain open, he added in a tweet. “Time for some tough decisions. CM Sindh has discussed with Governor Sindh, Corps Commander Khi, DG Rangers & IG Sindh to ensure full implementation of Govt’s decision of keeping people at their homes. #SindhGovt will ensure that grocery & medical shops remain open,” he wrote.
Sindh remains the worst affected with a total of 396 cases. With 36 new cases confirmed in pilgrims who arrived from Taftan, Sindh’s total of coronavirus cases has risen to 396. According to a spokesperson for the Sindh health department, 125 new cases were detected in pilgrims from Iran and three in Karachi on Saturday.
In Punjab, according to Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, there are 137 confirmed cases of coronavirus. As many as 41 new coronavirus cases were detected in Punjab on Saturday, according to Qaiser Asif, the provincial health department spokesperson.
Out of total 137 cases, 20 have been confirmed in Lahore while 106 are in Dera Ghazi Khan, four in Gujranwala, one in Rawalpindi, one in Multan and two in Jhelum.
As many as 25 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Gilgit-Baltistan, taking the region’s total to 55.
Two new COVID-19 cases were confirmed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, taking the provincial total to 27. According to the KP health department, one of the cases has a foreign travel history while the other is a case of local transmission.
Balochistan Chief Secretary Fazeel Asghar confirmed 12 new cases of coronavirus in the province, taking the provincial tally to 104. All the new cases emerged from the quarantine centre in Quetta.
A day earlier, Pakistan had recorded its third death from the coronavirus; the first in Sindh. Sindh Health Minister Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho had confirmed the death of a 77-year-old COVID-19 patient in the province. The minister had said the patient was a cancer survivor and had diabetes and hypertension when he contracted the virus, adding that the patient did not have any travel or contact history, meaning they contracted the virus from the community.
