Covid-19 second wave: PM aide says time has come for tough decisions

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said the number of COVID-19 cases have surged in Pakistan during the recent few weeks and time has come to take tough decisions, ARY News reported.

While talking in ARY News program ‘powerplay’ Dr Faisal Sultan has expressed concerns over the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country and said that time has come to take more strict decisions in order to tackle the outbreak.

“People are not taking pandemic seriously due to which positive cases are increasing rapidly,” he said, adding that marriage halls and restaurants were becoming main sources for the spread of Covid-19.

Underscoring the neglect from the masses, SAPM on health said the people need to be more careful about the situation and play an active role in the fight against the pandemic.

Speaking on the vaccine, the special assistant said that Prime Minister has approved funds to purchase the possible vaccines of COVID-19 in advance.

The Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination had written a letter to PM Imran Khan to seek permission for advance booking of coronavirus vaccines.

It is pertinent to mention here that the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) today discussed and recommended ban on big public gatherings in the country in view of the soaring rate of COVID-19 positive cases in the second wave of the disease.

A review meeting of the NCOC, chaired by federal minister Asad Umar, discussed spike in novel coronavirus positive cases and recommended ban on large public gatherings in the country as a precautionary measure.

Read More: 21 more die of coronavirus, 1,708 fresh cases surface in Pakistan

The NCOC session also recommended tightening of precautionary measures in the high risk areas.

The federal and provincial officials briefed the meeting that the rate of positive cases continuously rising in the educational institutions. The novel coronavirus rate has three-fold increased, the NCOC session was informed.

The NCOC session also recommended for early winter vacations in schools to halt rapid spread of the pandemic. The meeting recommended immediate closure of shrines, cinema halls and theatres across the country.