Don't head to Swat, other tourist spots in northern areas this Eid

PESHAWAR: The Provincial Task Force on Covid-19 decided on Thursday to close all tourist spots in Pakistan’s northern areas during Eid holidays to stem the third wave of the coronavirus.

A meeting of the Task Force reviewed the prevailing Covid-19 situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and took a number of decisions to prevent the spread of the virus.

Briefing the media after the meeting, the KP chief minister’s Special Assistant on Information Kamran Bangash said Covid-19 cases registered a sharp decline due to the government’s “best strategy”.

“The positivity ratio of infections is 8 per cent to 9pc,” he said, adding the hardest-hit districts of the province are also reporting a drop in cases.

Bangash announced that all tourist spots will remain closed from May 8 to May 16. He said the provincial government will approach the Centre seeking a ban on inter-provincial transport.

Grocery shops and pharmacies will remain open until 6pm, whereas milk shops will stay open round the clock.

The SACM said the chief minister issued directives for purchasing Covid vaccine at the provincial level. A total of 250,000 people have thus far been inoculated against the virus in the province.

“We have been given 649,000 doses and nearly 25,000 people are administered vaccine daily,” he disclosed.