— Indoor gatherings, wedding ceremonies and dining to remain suspended between January 20-31
— NCOC to review restrictions on January 27
— 76 million people fully vaccinated, 100 million received at least one jab
ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) Wednesday reinstated Covid-19 restrictions, suspending indoor weddings and dining in cities with transmission rates exceeding 10 per cent as authorities scrambled to find the missing link in the fresh outbreak.
The meeting also okayed the presence of up to 300 people in the indoor gatherings and 500 in outdoor events in the districts with a positivity rate under 10 percent.
Whereas, in districts with transmission rates crossing the barrier of 10 percent, outdoor gatherings are permitted to allow up to 300 people while indoor events remain strictly prohibited.
The meeting also allowed education activities to continue for those under and over 12 in districts with a positivity rate of up to 10 percent. But the attendance is halved for those under 12, and 100 percent for those over 12 in districts.
A press statement issued from the body said the restrictions will remain in effect from January 20 to 31, and will be reviewed on January 27 to assess the latest situation.
The ban on indoor dining, however, will go into effect from January 24.
The development came as the nation reported almost 5,500 new cases of the coronavirus, the highest single-day tally since August. On August 4, the nation logged 5,661 infections in a single day, which gradually dropped to 291 on December 29.
The daily caseload, however, has spiked again since the beginning of this month after some cities reported cases of the new Omicron variant.
Pakistan registered 5,472 new infections with a 9.5 percent positivity rate in the last 24 hours, according to the Ministry of National Health Services data.
The total number of cases rose to 1.14 million since March 2020. Simultaneously, 628 patients have recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 1.26 million, said the NCOC.
Meanwhile, another eight people died due to the pandemic, pushing the death toll to 29,037.
Pakistan is currently battling a fifth wave of the crisis, along with the rising Omicron cases across the country.
Sindh, mainly Karachi, is the worst hit, reporting around 60 percent of the total new infections. On Tuesday, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry said the cases of Omicron variant were “the highest in school-going children” in the port city.
The provincial government, however, has no plans to reimpose coronavirus restrictions as hospitals have not reported a serious burden.
A few schools in the capital of Islamabad have been shut after the virus was found among students.
The government has so far administered the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine to over 100 million, while over 76 million people have been fully vaccinated, according to official data.
— With input from Anadolu Agency
