First 15 cases of coronavirus reported in KP province: Taimur Jhagra

PESHAWAR: Health Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Taimur Jhagra on Monday announced that around 15 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the province, ARY NEWS reported.

This is for the first time that the patients from the province have tested positive for the virus that has already affected at least 106 people in other parts of the country.

#CoronaVirusUpdates
Just received news that 15 of 19 individuals received in KP from Taftan have tested positive for Corona Virus. These are the first positive cases in KP.
They are being well looked after in quarantine in an isolated facility in DI Khan. More details soon.

— Taimur Khan Jhagra (@Jhagra) March 16, 2020

The provincial minister in a message posted on his micro-blogging site-Twitter- account said that around 19 people underwent the test of which 15 of them have turned out to be carrying the virus. “All of them have returned after spending time at Taftan’s quarantine facility,” he said.

They are being well looked after in quarantine in an isolated facility in DI Khan, said the minister who announced that more details will follow later.

Earlier in the day, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Mahmood Khan has said that the government and people are jointly struggling to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the province.

Talking to a suspected coronavirus patient in quarantine centre Dera Ismail Khan via Video call from Peshawar on Monday, he said the government is committed to defeat this fatal disease.

The patient expressed stratification over the arrangements made for them in the quarantine center D.I.Khan.

The provincial government of KP on Friday had announced to close all the public and private educational institutes across the province for 15 days to combat the spread of COVID-19.

It was decided in the meeting to ban all public gatherings across the province. The cabinet also ordered the evacuation of students from hostels.

It has also decided to postpone official events across the province. In addition, festivals and prison visits have also been banned.

The cabinet meeting also decided to raise the issue of closure of the Torkham border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan with the federal government.