Pak areas with COVID-19 cases to be sealed off

The federal and provincial governments of Pakistan have decided to seal the areas where new cases of coronavirus were reported, as the addition of over 100 cases from across the country has taken the overall number of infections to 1,193, the media reported on Friday.

After detection of some new cases, Bhara Kahu, Chak Shahzad and Ramsha Colony in Islamabad; some parts of Sadiqabad, a part of Dhoke Kashmirian and B Block of Satellite Town in Rawalpindi; and Mohrah Akkrah near Sohawa and Manga village in Charsadda have been sealed, reports Dawn news.

Vehicles, except those involved in freight transportation, have been banned on highways and motorways.

As many as 30,000 boxes of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) were being prepared by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) which will be given to health professionals treating infected patients.

Moreover, the Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) has attained the capability to produce 25,000 face masks and 10,000 litres of hand sanitiser on a daily basis.

Speaking at a press conference after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee, Special Assis­tant to Prime Minister on Health Zafar Mirza on Thursday said that it was decided to ensure availability of PPEs to every health professional performing coronavirus-related duties.

Besides the cases, Pakistan has also reported nine deaths.