Current Final

Tag: coronavirus

  • PM convenes high-level meeting on coronavirus outbreak

    PM convenes high-level meeting on coronavirus outbreak

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan has convened a high-level inter-ministerial meeting to formulate a strategy for tackling the outbreak of coronavirus as it claims at least 81 lives in China, and leaves thousands of others affected.

    According to a notification issued by the PM’s Office on Monday, the meeting has been convened “in light of 2,000 coronavirus cases being confirmed across the globe amid the presence of a large number of Chinese nationals in Pakistan and frequent travel between the two countries”.

    In mid-December, some people in the central Chinese city of Wuhan began complaining of flu and pneumonia-like symptoms. Some had a high fever. Doctors were perplexed. To find out what might be causing their illness, geneticists analysed the DNA of the virus that had infected them.

    At once, the scientists realised the virus was new to science. As of January 23, experts at the World Health Organization (WHO) in Switzerland estimated that at least 557 people have contracted the rapidly spreading disease.

    As Pakistan remains at risk if necessary precautions are not taken, the federal-level meeting has been summoned by the premier’s office under the chairmanship of special assistant to the PM on national health services, regulations and coordination.

    Outcome of the meeting along with recommendations will be furnished to the PM’s office within one week, the notification said.

  • Can you get coronavirus through your AliExpress order?

    Can you get coronavirus through your AliExpress order?

    Chinese health authorities have said that the international outbreak of respiratory illness caused by coronavirus has killed over 70 people and affected at least 1,500 others.

    The deadly outbreak began in Wuhan, China, at a market selling live poultry, seafood and wild animals. Now the virus has turned up in Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam, Nepal, France, Australia and even the United States. Investigators in still other countries, including Pakistan and several American states, are evaluating possible cases.

    Officials in China have closed transportation links from and within Wuhan and other affected cities. The move was a significant escalation in the country’s attempts to contain the virus as millions embarked on holiday travel for the Lunar New Year.

    ALIEXPRESS POSING ANY THREATS?

    With news of the outbreak taking the world by storm and people going an extra mile to protect themselves and their loved ones, someone has pointed out how global population might be at risk due to ordering stuff from Chinese online shopping giant, AliExpress.

    Launched by the Alibaba Group in 2010, AliExpress is made up of small businesses in China and other locations, such as Singapore, that offer products to international online buyers.

    But can ordering stuff from China also get the virus delivered to your doorstep?

    The answer is no. Reports quoted Epidemiologist Zoran Radovanovic as saying that an order from AliExpress takes several weeks to be delivered, and the virus cannot survive that long. The length of time it survives primarily depends on the conditions — whether it’s damp, dark, and on what surface it finds itself, because it’s easier to survive on plastic than on metal.

    In the case of this virus, it’s a matter of hours — it can survive for several hours on a surface, but not for several days. So chances are that if you pay extra for faster delivery, you could end up being at risk of getting infected.