–13 localities in Lahore completely or partially sealed; Sindh govt says won’t seal off entire 11 UCs
–Asad Umar says asymptomatic people to be tested as corona cases cross 5,000 with 86 dead
–Minister says decision on extension of lockdown to be taken on Monday
LAHORE/KARACHI: Several densely populated localities in Lahore and sindh have been completely or partially sealed amid rising corona cases in the two major cities of Pakistan on Saturday, as the total number of COVID-19 infections was reaching 5,000 with Punjab and Sindh accounting for most cases in the country.
According to reports, at least 13 neighbourhoods in Lahore and 11 union councils in Karachi’s East district have been completely or partially sealed with the Punjab and Sindh governments already announcing that they are likely to extend their lockdowns for another week.
According to the Lahore district administration, the localities sealed included Raiwind City, Sikandria Colony Samanabad, Bedian Road, China Scheme Gujjarpura, Begum Kot Shahdara, Chah Meeran Shadbagh, Small Industries Society Defence, Rustom Park, Gulshan-e-Ravi, Rehmanpura, Wahdat Colony, Bahria Town, Railways Colony’s Engine Shed and Saddar.
However, the Sindh government, hours after announcing it is cordoning off neighbourhoods in the port city, decided to withdraw the decision in light of likely inconveniences to people.
According to the earlier decision, 11 neighbourhoods of Karachi were ordered by the deputy commissioner to be sealed, with police and Rangers told to ensure people stay within the marked off areas.
In a late night development, Information Minister Sindh Nasir Hussain Shah said that the government will not seal entire union councils, rather “only those specific areas where cases have been reported will be sealed”.
“It will cause great inconvenience to the people if such large areas are completely closed off,” he said.
As of Saturday 11.30pm, the number of cases was 5,015 with 86 deaths reported since the outbreak. Punjab has reported 2,410 and Sindh 1,318 cases so far. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan have reported 697 and 228 cases, respectively. Islamabad, Azad Kashmir have 113 and 34 cases each, with Gilgit-Baltistan detecting 215 cases so far.
TESTING OF ASYMPTOMATIC PATIENTS:
In wake of the quick surge in corona cases, the federal government is planning to test asymptomatic coronavirus patients in a bid to contain the pandemic that is expected to rattle the Pakistani healthcare system in the next few weeks.
In a presser alongside Prime Minister’s Adviser on Health Dr Zafar Mirza, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar said Pakistan now had the capacity to conduct at least 100,000 tests in 26 laboratories situated across the country, adding that the government may begin testing asymptomatic individuals moving forward.
“We’ve only been testing visibly symptomatic patients thus far. It is possible that we will start testing asymptomatic people going forward provided they came in contact with those who have already tested positive,” Umar said.
He further revealed that the government had procured and distributed 14 new Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test machines among the provinces. “Yesterday we received material for 100,000 test kits, 50,000 of these will be given to Sindh while 25,000 to Balochistan.”
Citing South Korea’s mass testing and contact tracing as an example of a successful strategy against the coronavirus, Asad said that Pakistan also needed to conduct mass testing and contact tracing of those tested positive to curb the spread of the virus.
He said a future course of action on the country’s fight against the pandemic, including the curbs on movement and businesses, will be determined after the National Coordination Committee (NCC) session on Monday.
He added that the cabinet will be meeting Prime Minister Imran Khan before that on Sunday to seek his counsel regarding the country’s measures against the virus.
“We will present our recommendations to the prime minister on measures such as quarantining, contact tracing and mass testing tomorrow and seek his point of view on these matters,” Umar said.
“Additionally, NCC will conduct its session on Monday and we expect chief ministers of all four provinces and Azad Jammu and Kashmir to be present there. My hope is that we can constitute a unified national plan going forward,” Umar added, reminding the nation that a full team at the National Command and Operation Centre was working in close coordination with the provinces at all times.
Though the revenue had fallen by about one-third from the economic impact of the virus, remittances continued to pour in, he added.
Speaking to reporters, Mirza warned against any relaxation in lockdown and said easing restrictions right now would be a grave mistake as the fight against corona was not over yet.
“Some people look at our numbers and think we haven’t had as many cases and deaths as other countries. This sort of thinking is a serious mistake,” Mirza said, cautioning that new cases and deaths will soar if restrictions were relaxed.
“In fact we should consider adding to our existing restrictions, if we can,” advised Mirza.
