Coronavirus: Section 144 imposed for two weeks in KP capital

PESHAWAR: The provincial government has imposed Section 144 for 14 days in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) capital Peshawar in view of the coronavirus cases, ARY News reported on Wednesday.

A notification has been released for the imposition of Section 144 for banning crowds, public gatherings, religious, political, social and other events in order to stop further spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

The local administration said that the restrictions will be lasted till April 7, whereas, hospitals, clinics, laboratories, pharmaceutical factory and medical stores were exempted.

According to the notification, only persons of a family will be allowed to move around for purchasing essential commodities during the period.

It is pertinent to mention here that the tally of coronavirus cases in Pakistan jumps to 1022 including 413 in Sindh, 310 in Punjab, 117 in Balochistan, 81 in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), 80 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 20 in federal capital Islamabad, one in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Eight patients have lost their lives due to the virus and 50 new cases were reported since Tuesday evening.

The number of COVID-19 cases has risen to 440,359 and 19,753 deaths around the world. As many as 101,232 patients have recovered so far.