Suo motu notice: Federal govt submits report to SC on COVID-19

ISLAMABAD: The government on Saturday informed the Supreme Court that special counters had been set up at all the major international airports besides further strengthening all ground crossings at the Taftan, Chaman and Torkham borders.

As the Supreme Court will take up tomorrow (Monday 13) the suo motu case regarding combating the COVID-19 pandemic, Additional Secretary Ministry of National Health Services Regulation and Coordination (NHSRC) on Saturday submitted a report.

Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Gulzar Ahmed the other day took the first suo motu notice over ‘inadequate facilities’ in the country to combat coronavirus.

Justice Gulzar Ahmed asked the three respondents to provide details about what measures the government had taken so far to contain the spread of virus and what facilities had been provided to the hospitals.

A five-member larger bench of the apex court — headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed — will hear the case on Monday, April 13.

Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Qazi Muhammad Amin Ahmed are the other bench members.

In its report, the government submitted that extra staff had been deployed and emergency declared in the border areas of Balochistan with Iran.

It was further submitted that all the passengers were required to fill mandatory health declaration forms before landing into Pakistan.

The court was further informed that 207 hospitals in all major cities and 154 districts of Pakistan had been identified for isolation of suspected patients and isolation capacity increased.

It was further submitted that quarantine centers had been established in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) in different areas with a total of 300 beds for COVID-19.

The centers have been established at the Pak China Friendship Center, OGDCL, Hajj Complex, Radisson Hotel, and Hil View Hotel, the report says, adding that some 154 beds for isolation facilities had been provided at the PIMS, Polyclinic, Capital Hospital and the Federal Government Services Hospital.

Likewise, in order to identify the suspected corona patients, around 83 thermal scanners had been installed in the 83 areas countrywide.

The court was also provided with details about the number of healthcare providers (doctors, paramedics and allied) at the facilities in the ICT including 875 doctors at the public sector hospitals and 905 in private hospitals with 1,884 paramedics in public and 2,056 in private hospitals.

Similarly, a total of 850 doctors and paramedics, including 200 at the PIMS, 350 at the DHO and 300 in the CHE, have been trained for the control of outbreak in the ICT.

The court was further informed that the federal government, through the Ministry of NHSRC, worked to control the outbreak as per the national commitment.

The court was informed that 13,000 health facilities across the country were entrusted with the responsibility to collect surveillance data. Public awareness messages have been developed and regularly disseminated to all modes of media, the report stated.

The court was further informed that the prime minister chaired 32nd National Security Committee meeting on March 13, 2020, wherein all the stakeholders decided close coordination and a unified response with daily monitoring through the national coordination committee and awareness campaigns for prevention of COVID-19.

The court was also informed that the federal government had established Sehat Tahafuz Helpline 1166 to provide health related information services to the people.

Meanwhile, former president Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Amanullah Kanrani has moved an application to the Supreme Court pleading that he be made a party to the instant matter in the larger interest of the people of Balochistan to which he belonged.