Rising coronavirus cases: KP govt to get tough with people for compliance of SOPs

PESHAWAR: The Provincial Task Force on Covid-19 on Friday expressed concern over the increasing positivity ratio of coronavirus cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and decided to take measures to ensure strict compliance with the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs) already notified to avoid the spread of the pandemic.

The decision was made at a meeting of the Provincial Task Force chaired by Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, said a handout. The participants reviewed the overall situation of the current wave of Covid-19 in the province and took a number of important decisions to this effect.

The provincial cabinet members Shahram Tarakai, Taimur Saleem Jhagara, Kamran Bangash, Chief Secretary Kazim Niaz, Inspector General of Police Moazzam Jah Ansari, Corps Commander Lt-General Nauman Mahmood, administrative secretaries of the relevant departments and others attended the meeting.

The forum directed the police to take a lead role for the SOPs and NPIs compliance, and decided to request the Pak Army for assistance in this regard. It was agreed in the meeting to strictly monitor the prevailing situation on a daily basis and impose more restrictions if deemed necessary. The forum gave serious thought to block the mobile SIM cards of those citizens not getting them vaccinated against Covid-19. The relevant officials were directed to fix a deadline for that and take necessary steps for the awareness of the general public about the deadline.

The forum expressed dissatisfaction over the low ratio of Covid vaccination in the provincial capital. It directed the Health Department and district administration to take concrete steps to achieve the desired target of vaccination.

Earlier, briefing the participants about the status of corona vaccination in the province, it was informed that one million people were being vaccinated on a daily basis countrywide out of which 0.2 million vaccination was being carried out in KP.

The Task Force decided to declare two days in a week (Saturday and Sunday) as off days throughout the province and keep all the markets and shops except for essential services, closed on the closed days.

The forum decided to suspend elective services on a need basis in the hospitals of most affected areas and directed the Health Department for necessary steps wherever required.

In view of the sensitivity of the situation with regard to Covid-19 in certain districts of Hazara division, it was decided to engage the Pak Army to assist the local administration to contain the spread of the virus.

The district administrations and tehsil municipal administrations were directed to improve the free distribution of facemasks in the public. The task force stressed the need for mass awareness in the general public to remove misconceptions about corona vaccinations. The departments concerned were directed to launch the campaign through all the platforms of mass communication. The Task Force informed that the Health Department was working to add additional 1,450 beds in the existing beds capacity allocated for corona patients in the hospitals which included 363 Low Flow Beds, 864 High Dependency Beds and 249 Intensive Care Unit Beds.

The chief minister directed the administration to ensure strict implementation of preventive measures already notified to contain the pandemic. He added that the situation would be monitored regularly, and if required, the government would go for more restrictions during the next couple of weeks.