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Friday March 29, 2024

Next 22 days critical, says Fayyazul Hassan Chohan

By Sabah
April 11, 2020

LAHORE :Punjab Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan has said that the next 22 days are going to be critical for Pakistan with regard to fight against coronavirus and the labour class would be the most vulnerable in this situation.

He reiterated Prime Minister Imran Khan’s message of prevention from the pandemic through precautions. Speaking at a news conference, the minister said that the number of coronavirus cases in the country was increasing quickly but the government and all its departments were taking every step they could to slow the spread of the virus. He urged the public to self-isolate themselves at home unless outside movement was necessary. He criticised the opposition for not standing with the government during this tough time instead of playing politics. He said that the public had no trust in the opposition parties, therefore, no one had donated even a single penny to Shehbaz Sharif’s fund but people had responded very positively to Imran Khan’s plea.

The provincial information minister also announced that the government was going to introduce a special assistance package for journalists. Under the proposed package, any journalist who would be infected with the virus would receive Rs100,000 and in case of death, his/her family would receive Rs 1 million while the spouse of the deceased journalist will be given Rs 10,000 monthly allowance as well. He also said that newspaper sellers association would receive safety equipment from today (Saturday) and 10 journalists would be awarded excellence awards for their work.

Chohan added that Punjab government would provide masks and protective gear to newspaper hawkers. The newspaper hawkers will be provided with protective kits along with sanitizer and masks. Safety gear will be handed over to the union president, he said.

Chohan said the next few days were really dangerous and sensitive in terms of coronavirus spread. People should be cautious and stay at home. “We are taking steps to contain coronavirus spread,” he said.