Coronavirus: Full lockdown imposed in Punjab from May 8 to 16

The government of Punjab on Wednesday announced that owing to the growing number of coronavirus cases in the province, there will be a complete lockdown during the Eid holidays — from May 8 to 16.

As reported by Geo News, the decision was taken during a meeting chaired by the provincial health minister Dr Yasmin Rashid. 

The government announced that during the holiday period, all activities will be prohibited in the province, while there will be a ban on public transport. Besides that, all parks and recreational spots in the city will remain closed.

The provincial government said that checkpoints will be set up at all the entry and exit points of the city, where police, Rangers and army personnel will be deployed to monitor the situation.

"In order to control the coronavirus situation in the province, the next 20 days are crucial," Dr Rashid said, adding that the government is employing efforts to curb the spread of the virus.

She stressed that owing to the third wave of the virus, people should celebrate Eid ul Fitr in a simple way, adding that people should follow the government's mandated coronavirus standard operating procedure (SOPs) and prove themselves to be responsible citizens.

Pakistan reports over 4,000 new infections during past 24 hours

With no signs of coronavirus pandemic going away anytime soon, Pakistan reported 4,113 new coronavirus infections, raising the total case tally to 841,636 across the country.

According to the official data provided by National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the positivity ratio in Pakistan stands at 9.17% as of today whereas the number of active cases is reported at 84,480.

With 119 new fatalities, the country's death toll stands at 18,590. Most deaths in the country were reported in Punjab followed by Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

In addition, nationwide recoveries were recorded at 738,727.

Punjab remains the worst-hit province by the pandemic both in terms of cases reported as well as deaths followed by Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan.

So far, 310616 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Punjab, 287643 in Sindh, 121099 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 22776, in Balochistan, 76696 in Islamabad, 17,397 in Azad Kashmir, and 5341 in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Furthermore, 8741 individuals have lost their lives to the virus in Punjab, 4687 in Sindh, 3466 in KP, 239 in Balochistan, 698 in Islamabad, 491 in Azad Kashmir, and 107 in GB.