The District administration in Lahore has unsealed and lifted the smart lockdown in seven localities after smart sampling showed improvement in coronavirus situation on the ground. As the COVID-19 cases are persistently decreasing in Pakistan, the government of Punjab is easing smart-lockdown in order to help out citizens to go back to their businesses. Asad Umer has repeatedly said that if Pakistanis continue to follow the SOPs, the country is likely to come out of the deadly pandemic very soon. As the COVID-19 situation improves in Punjab, there is also a hope that the educational institutions may be reopened anytime soon.
Ventilators are being produced in Pakistan by Ministry of Science and Technology, says Information Minister @shiblifaraz https://t.co/X8aZMWran6 #Covid_19 #TogetherWeCan #CoronavirusPandemic #CoronaFreePakistan #PakistanFightsCorona
— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) July 4, 2020
In last 10 days, four coronavirus cases were reported from Walled City of Lahore while five people tested positive for the virus in Gulberg. It was also decided to unseal Model Town, DHA, Gulshan Ravi, Faisal Town and Garden Town.
It is pertinent to mention here that coronavirus cases have surged to 225,283 in Pakistan with 4,619 nationwide fatalities.
Read More: Is Punjab government going to impose smart lockdown across the province?
According to the latest figures by the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC), 3,387 persons have been tested positive for COVID-19 in 24 hours.
Results of smart #lockdown in #Islamabad were quite satisfactory and only 113 cases of #COVID__19 positive were detected out of 3,000 tests conducted during the last 24 hours.#Pakistan https://t.co/mOhUzmeNsd
— Asad Ali Toor (@AsadAToor) July 4, 2020
Till now 90,721 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Sindh, 80,297 in Punjab, 27,506 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10,717 in Balochistan, 13,292 in Islamabad, 1,536 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 1,214 in Azad Kashmir.
Earlier the Punjab government issued a list of localities to be sealed off in order to effectively contain the COVID-19 outbreak. The district administration focused on areas with high-risk potential and blocked all the roads leading to the said areas.
The areas included Chaman Bagh, Rajgarh, Ramnagar, Qilla Gujjar Singh, Abdul Kareem Road, Usmania Colony, Royal Park, Karim Park at Shafiqabad, Goal Bagh at Shadbagh, Bagumkot, Shama Colony near Shahdara, Ravi Clifton, Hanif Park, Malik Park, Johar Town (B, F2, J2 and G3 blocks), Canal View Society B Block, Wapda Town (F2, G blocks), PCSIR Phase II B Block, Gulberg (A3, B2, B1 blocks), Sirajpura Darogawala, A and B blocks of Bismillah Housing Scheme, Manawan, DHA Phase 1 (all sectors), Askari 10 (complete), DHA Phase-5 (all sectors), Cavalry Ground (Shiraz Villas), eight streets of Gulshan Colony, Quaid-i-Millat Colony in Kotlakhpat area, Ghosia Colony in North Cantt, F Block 400-440 of Gulshan-i-Ravi, backside of Lahore General Hospital, Alhamad Colony, Islampura, etc.
COVID-19 situation improves in Punjab: Committees constituted to monitor daily affairs
As some areas are still sealed off, the Punjab government has constituted three committees, giving them various assignments in the wake of the ‘smart lockdown’.
The committee for the operational plan will comprise the Lahore commissioner, deputy commissioner, the capital city police officer, the Rescue 1122 DG, DHA CEO and representatives of agriculture, food, and livestock departments.
COVID-19 situation improves in Punjab, another committee shall monitor the supply chain of essential commodities and shall consist of ADC, AC concerned, DO industries, DO livestock, DO Food, secretary market committee and the representatives of wholesale markets and superstores.
The medical and emergency response committee shall comprise the ADC, CEO DHA and the representatives of the health department.
It is worth recalling that Pakistan, despite its close proximity with China, remained coronavirus-free until February 26 when a young man from Karachi tested positive after returning from Iran – one of the worst-hit countries. After a brief hiatus following the first case, Covid-19 cases spiked as more pilgrims returning from Iran tested positive for the virus.
Read More: Is ‘smart lockdown’ only way to curb spread of coronavirus?
Similarly, experts in Pakistan have warned against the premature easing of lockdown restrictions, fearing an exponential rise in infections. One healthcare worker said: “Everyone’s scared and exhausted. But we are fighting, we are pushing the limits. All we ask is that the government and people understand that they can help us help them by staying at home and providing us quality protective gear.”
However, the current situation and available data, and as COVID-19 situation improves in Punjab, suggest that Pakistan has been able to combat the virus, and there is a hope that the country may defeat the deadly pandemic in the coming days if the SOPs are effectively implemented across Pakistan.