We want 40-50 coronavirus diagnosis facilities in country: NDMA chief

ISLAMABAD: National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) chairman Lt Gen Muhammad Afzal on Saturday said a plane carrying 15 tonnes of medical supplies, including ventilators and infrared walkthrough gates, will land in the country on Tuesday.

Speaking at a media briefing alongside Special Assistant to PM on Health Dr Zafar Mirza, he said 400 ventilators will arrive in Karachi next week.

The NDMA chief said the government is striving to increase the number of coronavirus diagnosis facilities across the country with more labs being set up in Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.

He explained a lab is being upgraded in DG Khan to carry out COVID-19 tests as another lab established at Rawalpindi Medical University will be functional from tomorrow. He added a laboratory will also be set up in Gujranwala or Gujrat.

“We want 40-50 labs across the country,” the NDMA chairman maintained.

The NDMA chief said testing machines are being provided to Karachi, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

He said they would place an advertisement on Tuesday inviting applications for recruitment of 100 lab technicians on a six-month contract. Doctors and nurses on the front line tending COVID-19 patients will have all protective kits by coming Sunday, the NDMA chief said.

He said 30 testing kits onboard an aircraft arrived in Karachi, while another plane carrying medicine landed at Islamabad airport. He added a plane carrying 15 ventilators and other necessary equipment is arriving tonight.

We want 40-50 coronavirus diagnosis facilities across country: NDMA chief