Ag Agencies
ISLAMABAD: Planning minister Asad Umar on Sunday acknowledged that the number of Covid-19 patients was rising in the country, but urged the nation to “take responsibility” and follow the government’s health advice as it wound down the nationwide lockdown.
Addressing a press briefing here, Umar, however, insisted that the country’s coronavirus situation was not out of control, but the government was “fully prepared to cope with the situation” in case of any emergency.
The minister’s comments came as the country’s confirmed Covid-19 cases reached 30,334 with 659 deaths at the time of this report.
“Apart from all efforts of health teams, administration and use of technology to contain the disease, the most powerful activist is every individual who has the responsibility to not only save himself but to save the whole society and the country from the disease,” Umar said. The minister, who chairs the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) on coronavirus, said the major policy decisions had already been taken and now the government was ensuring operational implementation on the ground.
Umar also gave a presentation on how the government was implementing its Testing, Tracking and Quarantining (TTQ) system. He said: “Under this system we get to know the number of cases in various areas of the country, and the health teams approach those areas and decide which streets or localities are to be sealed.”
In Punjab, 359 smart lockdowns were enforced, while in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa the number was 177, he said. The minister also said the National Information Technology Board (NITB) has developed a web portal containing records of 424 hospitals, which will allow users to know about the available facilities in those hospitals for Covid-19 patients. Furthermore, he said the Punjab government has also developed a mobile application through which people could find out about the availability of health facilities, beds and ventilators.
Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, in a meeting with traders, said 709 new cases had emerged in the province after 4,215 samples were tested, while nine more patients lost their lives, taking the death toll to 189. The province’s confirmed cases touched 11,480 on Sunday.
There is spike in the positive cases, as the ratio of such cases is on the rise in Sindh, Shah said. Shah added that at present 9,210 patients are under treatment, of them 7,973 or 86 per cent of them are in home isolation who are being looked after by the province’s doctors. “Our death ration is also lower than KPK and Punjab,” he said and termed it a result of lockdown.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar ordered strict implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) after the lockdown was eased in the province. He emphasised that the dangers of coronavirus still persist and everyone would have to show responsibility and care.