Pakistan mulling to impose lockdown in major cities as COVID-19 cases surge

The Pakistan government has said that it is thinking in terms of imposing a 'complete lockdown' in major cities if it does not get the cooperation of the masses to tackle the situation and people continue to flout COVID-19 protocols.

This was announced by Pakistan's Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Wednesday. The minister urged the people of Pakistan to understand the gravity of the COVID-19 situation. "Take care of yourself and your fellow Pakistanis. The situation needs to be taken seriously," DAWN quoted him saying.

PM’s aide on health Dr Faisal Sultan also said on Wednesday that the option to impose a lockdown in major Pakistan cities wasn’t off the table.

Pakistan is currently facing a third wave of coronavirus infections, which officials say is more dangerous than the previous two.

Approximately 600 COVID-19 patients are being admitted to hospitals every day in Pakistan, National Command and Operation Centre's chief Asad Umar said Wednesday.

The virus has so far claimed 16,600 lives in Pakistan, according to official figures. The number of confirmed cases has jumped to 772,381.

Dr Javed Akram, the Vice-Chancellor of Lahore's University of Health Sciences, said the government can't fight the war against the virus on its own, but the masses will have to take ownership by following the SOPs.

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) too said a lockdown is likely to be imposed in major cities of Pakistan if the resurgence of new COVID-19 cases persists due to the failure of the public to comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) set by the government.