ISLAMABAD, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that the government has decided to seek help from the army in order to ensure compliance with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) by the public for controlling the third wave of the coronavirus.
Addressing the public via live broadcast after chairing a meeting of the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) here, Khan said that the meeting proposed to impose lockdowns in major cities where coronavirus cases are increasing, but he deferred the move for the time being.
Khan urged the Pakistani people to wear masks in public and follow the other SOPs set by the government to control the virus spread and stop the third wave of COVID-19 from getting worse.
If the SOPs are not followed, Pakistan's situation will be much worse in the near future and the disease spread will be out of control, and at that time the government will have no choice but to impose lockdowns, he added.
NCOC chief Asad Umar told the media after the meeting that all educational institutes will be closed in the areas where COVID-19 positivity rate is over 5 percent, while offices across the country will be bound to close at 2:00 p.m. every day.
Outdoor dining facilities at restaurants and indoor gym services have also been suspended by the government.
The third wave of COVID-19 outbreak is becoming serious in the country and the Pakistani government is pushing forward the vaccination drive on the one hand, and tightening anti-epidemic measures on the other.
According to the NCOC, a total of 784,108 cases of COVID-19 have been detected in the country so far out of which 16,842 died and 682,290 recovered. Enditem
