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Tag: coronavirus

  • Coronavirus: ‘Don’t panic,’ says Imran’s aide as Pakistan records highest single-day rise in cases

    Coronavirus: ‘Don’t panic,’ says Imran’s aide as Pakistan records highest single-day rise in cases

    Pakistan on Monday recorded its biggest single-day spike in coronavirus infections, taking the tally to 184, amid reports of ineffective quarantine procedures many of those are reported to be among those who had been held at a quarantine camp at the country’s Taftan border crossing with Iran.

    Dera Ghazi Khan authorities confirmed its first case of the novel coronavirus on Monday, raising the provincial count to two cases. The patient, who was among the 814 persons quarantined at a facility in DG Khan, had arrived from the Taftan border. DG Khan Health CEO said that the patient, a resident of Layyah, had been shifted to Indus Hospital Muzaffargarh.

    DG Khan Commissioner Naseem Sadiq said that another five patients, suspected of having contracted the virus, had also been shifted to Indus Hospital Muzaffargarh

    With an addition of 47 new cases, the tally of coronavirus cases in Sindh reached 150. According to a spokesperson for the Sindh health department, 119 of the cases arrived in Sukkur from Taftan, 30 are from Karachi while one is from Hyderabad. Sindh government spokesperson Murtaza Wahab said that the “exponential increase is largely due to the recent inflow of people brought in from Taftan after a purported quarantine”.

    Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah directed the provincial police chief to carry out raids on stores and pharmacies that are selling overpriced tissue papers, hand sanitisers and anti-septics.

    The Sindh government is also contemplating closing restaurants and tea shops by 9 pm, as the number of coronavirus cases in the province continues to rise. “I am now adopting a zero-tolerance policy,” Chief Minister Shah was quoted as saying in a statement by his media consultant. “If our people stay out and visit eateries until late at night, I will shut down restaurants and hotels,” Shah added.

    However, as per the government data, no deaths due to the coronavirus have been recorded.

    Prime Minister Imran Khan also chaired a meeting of the country’s national coordination committee on COVID-19. No major announcements were made following the meeting.

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) also reported its first cases of coronavirus, confirming 15 positive cases. KP Health Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra tweeted that 15 out of 19 individuals who arrived in the province from Taftan have tested positive for the virus.

    “They are being well looked after in quarantine in an isolated facility in Dera Ismail Khan,” he wrote.

    ‘DON’T PANIC’:

    With the coronavirus scare intensifying due to the sudden spike in the number of infections in Pakistan, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Zafar Mirza said that the government has extended its emergency measures, including travel restrictions and a ban on public gatherings to the entire country to tackle the coronavirus.

    Addressing a press conference, Dr Mirza said that there was no immediate need to lockdown cities in the country as the situation is “still under control”.

    He assured the public that the current preventive measures adopted by the health ministry are sufficient to control the spread of the novel coronavirus in Pakistan, adding, that measures would be tightened up if the situation turns more serious.

  • Police arrest fake doctor selling ‘vaccine’ for coronavirus

    Police arrest fake doctor selling ‘vaccine’ for coronavirus

    Karachi police arrest a man who was posing as a doctor and selling a ‘vaccine’ for the treatment of coronavirus in Defence.

    “Defence police has arrested one fake doctor, Syed Didar Ali, who was malignantly and fraudulently selling fake vaccine for COVID-19 at West Point Clinic, DHA Phase 2 Extension,” said Clifton Superintendent of Police Imran Mirza.

    READ MORE: Need authentic coronavirus updates? Follow these Twitter accounts

    A first information report (FIR) was registered against the suspect under Sections 419 (cheating by impersonation) and 420 (cheating or dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

    RELATED: KP CONFIRMS ITS FIRST 15 CORONAVIRUS CASES

    To date, there is no vaccine for coronavirus and has yet to be developed. As of now, countries are still scrambling to get enough test kits to confirm the virus in suspected cases.

    There are 183 confirmed cases in Pakistan with 150 cases in Sindh, 15 in KP, 10 in Balochistan, one in Punjab, two in Islamabad and five in Gilgit Baltistan.

  • Shehzad Roy wants citizens to practise social distancing

    Shehzad Roy wants citizens to practise social distancing

    Singer turned activist Shehzad Roy has appealed to his followers to practise social distancing to save themselves from contracting the coronavirus.

    In a video message posted to social media, Roy said, “I got the opportunity today to go to CM House, Sindh and meet the task force dealing with the coronavirus. I was very happy to see how serious the government is and it really is a serious situation.

    “I want to request everyone not to shake hands with each other even if someone wants to. Don’t do it, even if they feel insulted. Don’t get together for weddings or religious reasons,” he asserted. “On my way, I could see that everyone was at Sea View beach like it’s New Year’s or a holiday, people were celebrating.”

    He added, “We need to behave like ashraful makhlookat. This is a very dangerous situation. We don’t want to panic but we also need to save each other; we don’t want things to get so bad that we need to go on lockdown.”

    “Lets practice social distancing and try to infect the least number of people.”

    Meanwhile, other celebrities are also advising people to practise self-isolation.

    https://twitter.com/ushnashah/status/1239551329267322881?s=20

  • Need authentic coronavirus updates? Follow these Twitter accounts

    With the coronavirus spreading fast, misinformation on the matter is also spreading with the same speed causing panic among citizens.

    For the most authentic information on the matter, follow the following Twitter accounts.

    Dr Zafar Mirza, State Minister of Health of Pakistan

    Murtaza Wahab

    Taimur Khan Jhagra, Health Minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

    Musarrat Cheema, Spokesperson of the Government of Punjab

    https://twitter.com/MusarratCheema/status/1239242495956934656?s=20

    Liaquat Shahwani, Spokesperson of the Government of Balochistan

    UNICEF also requested people to beware of misinformation and take all coronavirus related information from official platforms.

    Meanwhile, The Current is also posting all updates regarding the coronavirus on its live blog. You can visit the blog here:

    Coronavirus
  • Hamza Shehbaz ‘avoids coronavirus’ in meeting with ex-Punjab Assembly speaker

    Hamza Shehbaz ‘avoids coronavirus’ in meeting with ex-Punjab Assembly speaker

    As the new coronavirus — COVID-19 — continues to spread across the globe and the infections tally in Pakistan reaches 94, many, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hamza Shehbaz, have been spotted avoiding direct physical contact such as handshakes, and resorting to new, cooler ways of greeting others.

    A viral photo on Monday showed the leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly (PA) greeting PML-N leader and ex-speaker of the provincial house, Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan, with an elbow bump instead of a handshake during a meeting in the former’s chamber.

    The two had met on Saturday to discuss the current political and economic situation of the country. PML-N Punjab lawmakers and local leaders were also in attendance.

    While Hamza might be the first prominent Pakistani to be spotted resorting to an elbow bump amid coronavirus fears, he is not the first political leader in the world to be doing so.

    United States (US) President Donald Trump was last week seen elbow bumping health executive Bruce Greenstein following a press conference during which a national emergency in response to coronavirus outbreak was declared.

    Here are a few other leaders avoiding physical contact as per the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO):

    Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi being welcomed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda as he arrives to attend a party meeting in New Delhi.
    US Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the government’s coronavirus task force, greets a woman at the Washington State Emergency Operations Center during a tour.
    Union parties leader Alexander Dobrindt greets German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a Buddhist style to avoid a handshake in times of coronavirus.

    Globally, more than 6,000 people have died and more than 156,000 have been infected by COVID-19 as the disease spreads rapidly to new territories.

  • Deceased Peshawar patient did not have coronavirus, tests confirm

    Deceased Peshawar patient did not have coronavirus, tests confirm

    Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Health Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra has withdrawn his earlier tweet regarding the first death of a suspected coronavirus case in Peshawar, saying that the deceased had tested negative for COVID-19.

    Earlier, it was reported that the patient had been admitted to Hayatabad Medical Complex in Peshawar and his test results were awaited, causing panic over what could have been Pakistan’s first reported death due to the new coronavirus.

    RELATED: How to get yourself tested for coronavirus in Pakistan

    If he had the virus when he died, he will be the first confirmed coronavirus death in Pakistan. However, the website https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ has already listed one death for Pakistan in it’s rankings of cases around the world.

    Screenshot from website worldometer info, which is ranking coronavirus cases in the world. Pakistan is listed as having one death due to the virus

    READ MORE: Sindh confirms 41 new cases of coronavirus, 94 infections confirmed in Pakistan

    There are at least 94 more cases in Pakistan and are steadily rising.

  • How to get yourself tested for coronavirus in Pakistan

    How to get yourself tested for coronavirus in Pakistan

    With the number of confirmed cases of the new coronavirus — COVID-19 — reaching 94 in Pakistan as Sindh alone reports a surge of 41 new cases on Monday, efforts are being made by the federal as well as all provincial governments to contain the outbreak that has claimed at least 6,000 lives globally.

    COVID-19, which belongs to a family of viruses that include the common cold and more serious diseases, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), has a wide range of symptoms, including fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties.

    If you feel like you have any of the symptoms, here’s how you can get yourself tested in Pakistan:

    • Visit a government-designated public or private hospital. According to Dawn, Dr Mumtaz Ali Khan of the National Institute of Health (NIH) has said that all district headquarters hospitals and tertiary care hospitals across the country are equipped to collect samples for coronavirus.
    • At the hospital, a doctor will check the patient for symptoms to determine if he or she has coronavirus, according to NIH Executive Director Maj Gen Aamir Ikram.
    • The patient will be asked a set of questions regarding their travel history as well as of those they have been in close contact with.
    • If the doctor rules out suspicion of coronavirus, the patient will be sent back.
    • If the doctor comes to the conclusion that the patient is manifesting symptoms, a swab of their saliva is taken and sent to one of the designated facilities that have coronavirus testing equipment.
    • This testing will be done free of cost.

    While some private labs are independently testing individuals for the virus against a fee, here’s a list of facilities sending samples to the main centres for free testing. The free facilities will, however, not conduct tests themselves on individual requests.

    SINDH:

    • Chandka Medical College Hospital – Larkana
    • Ghulam Muhammad Mahar Medical College – Sukkur
    • Peoples Medical University Hospital – Nawabshah
    • Civil Hospital – Karachi
    • Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre – Karachi
    • Lyari General Hospital – Karachi
    • Indus Hospital – Karachi
    • Aga Khan Hospital – Karachi
    • Dow University of Health Sciences, Ojha – Karachi
    • District Health Offices (DHOs) all over the province

    PUNJAB:

    • Services Hospital – Lahore
    • Nishtar Hospital – Multan
    • Benazir Hospital – Rawalpindi

    AZAD JAMMU & KASHMIR:

    • Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahayan Hospital – Muzaffarabad
    • Abbas Institute of Medical Sciences – Muzaffarabad
    • Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahayan Hospital – Rawalakot
    • Divisional Headquarters Hospital – Mirpur
    • District Headquarters Hospital – Kotli

    GILGIT BALTISTAN:

    • In Gilgit-Baltistan, citizens can contact district health authorities who will come to their homes to collect samples

    KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA:

    • In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Police Services Hospital has been made the main centre for dealing with coronavirus cases

    Meanwhile, the federal health ministry has set up 1166 as its coronavirus hotline.

  • ‘Shukriya Pakistan’: PSL’s foreign players leave early due to coronavirus outbreak

    ‘Shukriya Pakistan’: PSL’s foreign players leave early due to coronavirus outbreak

    With the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring the coronavirus to be a pandemic, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday decided to cut short the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2020 and hold the final match of the tournament on March 18 instead of March 23. 29 confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported in Pakistan, while two patients have completely recovered.

    According to a press release by the cricketing body, the playoff match has been replaced by the semi-finals, which will be held in Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on March 17; one at 2 pm and the second at 7 pm. The final will also take place at the Gaddafi Stadium at 7 pm on March 18.

    Read more – PCB allows foreign players to leave country amid coronavirus fears

    The PCB also allowed foreign players to leave if they wished to and a couple of the players cut short their trip and headed back to their home countries. Among those who left included Karachi Kings, Alex Hales, Multan Sultans Rilee Rossouw and James Vince; Peshawar Zalmi’s Tom Banton, Carlos Brathwaite, Liam Dawson, Lewis Gregory and Liam Livingstone; Quetta Gladiators Jason Roy and Tymal Mills; and Islamabad United’s Colin Munro, Dale Steyn, Dawid Malan and Luke Ronchi.

    As the foreign players headed back home, they took to social media to thank Pakistan and it’s people for their warmth and hospitality.

    https://twitter.com/AlexHales1/status/1238516816709914627?s=20
    https://twitter.com/daws128/status/1238575735121612800?s=20
    https://www.instagram.com/p/B9rQxI7H1ht/?igshid=1fegn51idpfxo

    Meanwhile, Lahore Qalandars’ Ben Dunk and Quetta Gladiators’ Shane Watson said that they had no qualms staying in Pakistan.

    Watson, while speaking to the media after the match, had said that if Pakistani players can play in Pakistan amid the coronavirus scare, then so can the foreign players.

  • Coronavirus: Indian media reports fake claim, says top Pak army officers infected

    In a rather amusing development amid coronavirus fears, Indian media has quoted a fake Twitter handle of Pakistan’s Health Ministry to report that at least eight officers of Pakistan army, including three lieutenant colonels, two colonels, two brigadiers and one major general, have tested positive for COVID-19.

    “Routine check-up in GHQ [General Headquarters] Rawalpindi by #COVID19 investigation team has found that 3 Lt.colonel, 2 Colonel, 2 Brigadier, 1 Maj.general has been tested positive for coronavirus. #CoronavirusPandemic. [sic]” reports quoted a statement tweeted by an account that has now been suspended by the micro-blogging website.

    The blunder was also highlighted by Uzair Hasan Rizvi of AFPFactCheck.

    A Health Ministry spokesperson also confirmed that the account was fake.

    It was created in September 2019 and was regularly tweeting misleading information regarding the efforts of the government to control coronavirus in the country.

    Meanwhile, the coronavirus tally in Pakistan has reached 29 with Islamabad’s maiden case being reported Saturday. The federal and all provincial governments are taking every possible step to contain the virus.

  • A health emergency

    A health emergency

    Coronavirus has taken the world by storm. The World Health Organization (WHO) says that Europe is now a new epicentre of the global pandemic. According to WHO, more than 132,500 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in 123 countries around the world, among which is Pakistan with 29 cases in Sindh, Gilgit-Baltistan and Islamabad.

    At least one infected patient is in a critical condition, reports have claimed.

    “Europe has now become the epicentre of the pandemic, with more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China,” said WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “More cases are now being reported every day than were reported in China at the height of its epidemic.”

    The United States (US) has declared a national emergency due to the spread of coronavirus. Pakistan, too, is taking some measures now that the pandemic is spreading across the globe. Sindh government has been the most vigilant and its health department has proven to be the most efficient during the crisis.

    The way the Sindh government is monitoring people travelling from abroad to setting up isolation wards to test those with coronavirus symptoms is something all other provinces should emulate.

    During his visit to Karachi, WHO country representative in Pakistan, Dr Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala, said that Pakistan had in time come up with one of the world’s best national response programmes against the new coronavirus and it is being implemented very effectively. While there is a fear that other provinces are not equally proactive, which might lead to serious consequences, the good thing is that the federal government is taking the issue seriously and has ordered that educational institutions, cinemas and even marriage halls will remain closed for three weeks.

    Religious congregations and sports and cultural festivals have also been suspended for three weeks. PSL matches will take place without spectators while some foreign players have also left. We need more diagnostic labs as we only have seven at the moment in Pakistan, which can conduct up to 15,000 tests. If the suspected number of cases goes up, we need to be ready. While public gatherings are banned, we hope that the people take the coronavirus outbreak seriously as all of us are at risk.

    We need to take preventive measures in order to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.