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Tag: Punjab

  • Are Punjab’s hospitals ready to continue dealing with COVID-19?

    Are Punjab’s hospitals ready to continue dealing with COVID-19?

    An additional burden has been placed on hospitals due to the sharp increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases across the country, including Punjab where the number of coronavirus cases is way past 38,000 and is likely to cross the 40,000 mark by tomorrow (Tuesday).

    But while Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid says the “situation is still not alarming” and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Zafar Mirza says authorities have “ample resources to deal with coronavirus patients so far”, here’s what the situation in the country’s most populous province looks like:

    No. of HospitalsNo. of BedsNo. of HDUs (High Dependency Units)No. of Ventilators
    2499644944568

    The Punjab government has allocated 249 hospitals for COVID-19 patients with 9,644 beds, of which 53 hospitals (21.2%) are private. According to data provided to The Current by Punjab Health Department, 7,346 beds are vacant so far across the province as most people are choosing to quarantine themselves at home amid reports of the dreadful conditions at government facilities.

    While the availability of beds is not yet an issue, other necessities do not seem up to the mark.

    As per estimated stats, almost 2,272 (7.3%) patients in the province are admitted to different hospitals. Of the total 2,272, at least 497 (21.8%) patients are in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) or HDUs, which means they are in a critical condition.

    Almost 1,500 beds were allocated by the government for ICUs and HDUs, of which 473 (30%) are at private hospitals, or so the authorities claim.

    When contacted by The Current, Lahore’s Shalamar Hospital, which according to official claims is supposed to be treating at least five coronavirus patients, refused to share any details pertaining to treatment or costs, saying no infected persons were being treated by the hospital. The response received from Sargodha’s Central Hospital was not that different either, even though the government claims to have mandated it to treat at least three patients.

    By the time this report was filed, 21% of patients admitted to hospitals were reported to be critically ill. If a mere 5% of patients visiting hospitals need HDUs or ventilators, within the next two weeks, the healthcare system of the country’s most populous province could collapse, suggests the current number of life-saving facilities available in Punjab.

  • Public parks in Lahore reopen after 75-day closure

    A large number of people in Lahore have visited various public parks of the city after they were opened for the general public today.

    As per reports, the public parks of the city have been opened after 75-day closure amid coronavirus outbreak in the city.

    The people adopted the standard operating procedures (SOPs) issued by the provincial government to curb the virus spread.

    On Thursday, the Punjab government had decided to reopen public parks in the provincial capital Lahore from May 5 (today).

    The Director-General of Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA), Muzaffar Khan Sial, had announced that the provincial government decided to reopen public parks in Lahore. The parks will be open from 6 am to 9 pm.

    Sial had added that the parks will be reopened under the standard operating procedures (SOPs) finalised by the provincial health department. The citizens will only be allowed to enter into the parks after wearing face masks and gloves.

    DG PHA urged the citizens to strictly follow precautionary measures and social distancing while visiting the public parks.

  • Private schools association demands reopening of schools from June 1

    Private schools association demands reopening of schools from June 1

    The All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) has demanded the government to reopen educational institutes in the country from June 1.

    As per reports, APPSF office-bearers, teachers and owners of school also took out rallies in various areas of Punjab to protest against shutting down the schools for too long.

    The protestors, who raised the slogan of “Education for All”, requested the Chief Justice of Pakistan, the army chief, the prime minister and the provincial authorities to open the schools on June 1 after issuing the standard operating procedures (SOPs).

    In Lahore, the people gathered outside the Civil Secretariat to protest against Punjab Minister for School Education Murad Raas. 

    “We are unable to pay the teachers,” the All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) President Kashif Mirza said at a press conference in Lahore. “We must be allowed to open schools from June 1.”

    He described the concept of online education as a “flopped project”.

    He further said the closure of schools till July 15 would result in the permanent closure of 50 percent of the private schools and around one million people would lose their jobs. He said even the worst-hit countries were letting educational institutions work.

    “We have formulated SOPs following international standards,” he said, suggesting the government to talk with them. He demanded that the government announce a relief package for private schools.

    Educational institutes in Pakistan have been closed since March. The measure was taken to curb the spread of coronavirus

    The number of reported coronavirus cases in Pakistan has gone to 66,457. The virus has claimed 1,395 lives in the country so far.

  • Indian Air Force’s MiG-29 fighter jet crashes 117 km from Lahore, in Jalandhar

    Indian Air Force’s MiG-29 fighter jet crashes 117 km from Lahore, in Jalandhar

    A MiG-29 interceptor of the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Friday crashed during a training mission near Punjab’s Jalandhar — 117 kilometres (km) from the provincial capital of Pakistan province of Punjab. The pilot ejected safely and was soon taken away in a rescue helicopter, the IAF said in a statement.

    “The aircraft had developed a technical snag and the pilot ejected safely as he was unable to control the aircraft. The pilot has been rescued by a helicopter. A court of inquiry has been ordered to investigate the cause of the accident,” the IAF said.

    The MiG-29 is a Soviet-era fast interceptor that has seen action in the Kargil war in 1999. It has also been used to escort other jets on bombing missions from incoming “bandits” or enemy fighter jets.

    The IAF operates over 60 MiG-29s, all of which have been upgraded with advanced avionics and better weapons to convert them into multi-role jets that can perform air-to-air and air-to-ground missions equally well.

    The Soviet-made jet had taken off from Adampur Air Force Station near Jalandhar which is the second-largest military airbase of India. The No. 47 and No 203 Squadrons of the IAF are stationed at this base. Adampur Base played a crucial role in the Indo-Pak War of 1965 as it is within 100 km from the Indo-Pak border.

    On February 26 last year, another variant of the jet — the MiG-21 fighters were up against much more modern Pakistani jets during aerial skirmishes.

    Indian planes had crossed the line of control and claimed to have bombed what New Dehli described as a terrorist training camp near Balakot. Islamabad had denied the Indian side of the story and provided sufficient evidence to back up its argument.

    A day later, Pakistani F-16s and other planes had crossed the line of control to attack Indian forces, New Delhi claimed. Indian MiG-21s were scrambled to intercept when  Islamabad shot down two MiG-21s of the IAF. An Indian Air Force MiG-21 pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, was captured by Pakistani security forces.

    He was later released as what Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan had said was a goodwill gesture.

  • Punjab govt gives 25-acre army land to 47 civilian officials

    Punjab govt gives 25-acre army land to 47 civilian officials

    An approval has been given for the allotment of up to 25 acres of state land, which was meant for the families of the martyred soldiers and war veterans under the Army Welfare Scheme (AWS), to 47 civilian government officials instead.

    According to Dawn, the Punjab government has made the allotments without legal sanction on the orders of former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf in contravention of merit and law. The report also quoted two officials at the Chief Minister’s (CM) Secretariat also confirming this on the condition of anonymity.

    The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government had cancelled the allotment, which had been ordered by the former dictator during January 2004 and May 2008 in alleged violation of the Colonisation of Government Land (Punjab) Act 1912 and the allotment policy framed in 1962 under it for the AWS.

    After the cancellation order, the PML-N government had also rejected multiple summaries put up to former CM Shehbaz Sharif for ratification. The land branch of General Headquarters (GHQ) had first approached the Punjab government in April 2009 to not revoke the allotments. The military was of the opinion that the “allotments made to the civil officials may be treated as closed chapter” and offered to work out allotment modalities for the future in consultation with the provincial government and the provincial Board of Revenue (BoR). However, Shehbaz had not obliged.

    CM Secretariat reportedly said that around 837 acres of the AWS land had been allotted to civilian officials without consulting the provincial government. The land had been allotted in districts of Bahawalpur, Pakpattan, Khanewal, Sahiwal, Muzaffargarh, Bahawalnagar, Rahim Yar Khan and Sadiqabad.

    The former CM rejected another summary prepared by the BoR in February 2012, as the then Punjab chief secretary noted that it didn’t augur well for the civil service and the overall good governance.

    According to the fresh summary approved by the Usman Buzdar government to restore and validate the allotments, the Shehbaz government had cancelled the allotments and retrieved the allotted land from the beneficiary officials in 2010, because the land was actually allotted to the military for a specific purpose under the law.

    Those who had sold the land allotted to them were told by the Shehbaz administration to deposit the sale proceeds to the provincial treasury. The provincial officials who had benefited from the GHQ’s decision were suspended while the matter of the three DMG officers who got the land was sent to the Establishment Division. Apparently, the Establishment Division did not take any action against them.

    The prominent beneficiaries include DMG officers – Sardar Ahmed Nawaz Sukhera (currently the federal cabinet division secretary), Dr Faisal Zahoor and Syed Imtiaz Hussain Shah. Ex-PCS officials who will benefit from the government decision include Mohammad Zahid Ikram, Sikandar Ali Bokhari, Syed Najaf Abbas Bokhari, Malik Mohammad Ramzan, Mohammad Ashraf Yousufi, Abdul Ghafoor Virk, Dur Mohammad Khan, Irshad Mohyuddin, Syed Zahid Hussain Jilani, Mohammad Ashfaq, Mohammad Akram Bhatti, Amir Karim Khan (currently PSO to CM Buzdar), Mushtaq Ahmed Anjum and Mohammad Azam Khan. The remaining officials mostly included district revenue officials.

    Eight beneficiary officers then filed a petition with the Lahore High Court (LHC) against the cancellation order of the Punjab government. In June 2013, the court directed the BoR member (colonies) to set aside the cancellation order and decide the matter afresh in accordance with the law after considering all the legal and factual submissions made by the parties and after following the due process as per law.

    The GHQ then cancelled the allotments in October 2013 in its papers.

    Officials at the CM Secretariat said as long as Shehbaz was there, no one dared to bring the matter up again.

    Later in November 2019, the DG Lands at GHQ wrote to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government led by Usman Buzdar for the restoration of the allotments, stating that “all the orders of president/chief executive of Pakistan were subsequently given constitutional protection and also upheld by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the Tikka Iqbal case”.

    Strangely enough the DG Lands did not mention that the said judgement was overturned by a 14-member bench in July 2009 in the PCO Judges case.

    Two days after the receipt of the DG Lands’ letter, the BoR member (colonies) initiated a fresh summary for the Punjab CM, requesting Buzdar to “take an explicit decision whether to withdraw the order cancelling the impugned allotments”. The CM referred the matter to the standing committee of the cabinet on legislative business that in February endorsed the viewpoint of the DG Lands, GHQ.

    The CM later approved the allotments “as recommended by the standing committee subject to ratification by the cabinet” given last week.

  • ‘We cannot afford this anymore’: Traders in Sindh, KP, Balochistan to reopen businesses from today

    Traders across the country have said that they would resume operations from today (April 15), however, the business community in Punjab has urged the government to permit activities for a limited time.

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, in his address to the nation on Tuesday, extended the lockdown till April 30, saying that some industries such as construction would be allowed to operate from Wednesday.

    The business community in Karachi said that they would resume operations from April 15 and that the traders would follow preventive measures. “We cannot afford the imposed restrictions anymore,” said a representative of Karachi’s trader community while addressing a press conference.

    “The businessmen have paid their employees a month’s salary but we will be unable to do so if the lockdown extends,” he said, adding that they would hand over the keys to their shops to the officials at the Chief Minister (CM) House and protest outside the provincial chief executive’s office if they are kept from resuming business activities.

    Voicing the traders in Sindh, Balochistan’s business community said that they would also resume operations from April 15. They said that the traders could no longer bear the lockdown restrictions, adding that activities would be conducted and precautionary measures would be followed. “The provincial government has been informed regarding the decision to resume operations.”

    Furthermore, the traders in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) said that they could not afford the lockdown further and that they would open shops from April 15 as well.

    United Business Group President Ilyas Bilour said that small scale traders were forced into starvation due to the lockdown, and lamented that labourers were severely affected due to the closure of business centres.

  • Punjab is offering a free online course on coronavirus control

    Punjab is offering a free online course on coronavirus control

    A short online course on prevention and control of coronavirus has been launched in Pakistan by the Punjab Skills Development Fund (PSDF) in collaboration with the online microlearning platform Gnowbe.

    The duration of the course is 30 minutes and it is open to the general public. It is free of cost and those who complete the course will receive an international certification from the School of Health Sciences at Singapore’s leading university Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

    An Urdu version of the course is also available so that a larger number of people can access it.

    Termed “Stay Protected with Infection Control and Prevention 101 Program” the online course will teach the nature and transmission of the virus.

    The course will consist of informative videos, tutorials and quizzes. There are two main topics: Infection Transmission, which details the chain of infection and transmission of diseases, and Infection Prevention, which includes sessions on prevention by hand hygiene and wearing personal protective equipment.

    It will be very helpful for those working on the frontline like the Prime Minister’s Tiger Force, field volunteers providing food and critical services, bank employees and law enforcement officers where the infection has the highest chances of spreading.

    In Singapore, Gnowbe has already been using its e-learning platform to provide the free course to the general public in eight. The partnership with PSDF will add Urdu to the menu as well.

    If you are interested in taking the course, use the following links to access it.

    For English: https://learn.gnowbe.com/infection-prevention-control-101

    For Urdu: https://be.gnowbe.com/signup/bundle/seykj3?gdid=ng9vvdz36rr6ob7womle

  • Punjab makes travel permission for recovered coronavirus patients compulsory

    The Punjab government has introduced a new rule for controlling the spread of the pandemic: authorities have made it compulsory for recovered patients to get a permission letter before travelling in and outside the province.

    As per reports, the home department announced that the recovered patients of coronavirus will now need a special permission letter for travelling including those belonging to parts of the country and willing to enter into Punjab.

    The citizens of Punjab, who have recovered from the virus, will need a permission letter from the concerned authorities to travel to other provinces. The patients discharged from the quarantine centres in other provinces will also need a permission letter to enter into Punjab.

    According to the home department, the recovered people could get permission from deputy commissioners from their districts. The home department issued the directives to the chief secretaries and police chiefs of the provinces.

  • ‘Disgruntled’ Aleem Khan to befriend PML-N, turn tables on PTI in Punjab?

    ‘Disgruntled’ Aleem Khan to befriend PML-N, turn tables on PTI in Punjab?

    Senior member of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and former Punjab minister Aleem Khan, who according to reports is “disgruntled” ever since a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) investigation was launched into his assets, has telephoned rival Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Punjab President Rana Sanaullah to discuss with him the fast-changing political scenario, especially in Punjab, The News reported.

    According to reports, Aleem contacted the PML-N stalwart and told him that he wanted to discuss “some important issues in the context of the fast-changing political scenario”, which Sanaullah immediately brought to the attention of party chief Shehbaz Sharif.

    “PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah immediately informed PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif about this political development. He [Sanaullah] was told to wait until he gives him directives in this regard,” the report quoted sources as saying.

    They said the PML-N leadership would assess all political options but is likely to keep a safe distance from “segments of PTI allegedly involved in the wheat or sugar crises” and are being accused of making billions through government subsidies and price hike, the report stated.

    “Aleem Khan had also approached Rana Sanaullah in the past when he was practically sidelined due to his growing differences with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan over the state of affairs in Punjab,” sources told The News and added that when Sanaullah was arrested in the controversial narcotics case, the PTI member had back then also sent him text messages, saying he hoped that the PML-N leader comes out clean.

    When contacted, PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah confirmed that he had a detailed telephonic conversation with Aleem and the two discussed the current political situation in the country.

    To a question, he said it was too early to say if the PML-N and the disgruntled PTI group led by Aleem would put in any efforts to bring in-house changes in Punjab because his party had a principled stance in this respect.

    “First we want electoral reforms and then we seek fresh general elections but there can be an interim arrangement till the completion of these goals,” Sanaullah said, adding that if someone said that Aleem had the support of only 20 to 25 PTI lawmakers in the Punjab Assembly, they would be underestimating him. “I personally know his real strength among the ranks of the PTI.”

    To another question, he said some PTI members from Punjab had contacted the PML-N in the past as well but the leadership had decided that it would be useless to participate in power politics without having any people-oriented political agenda.

  • VIDEO: CM Buzdar wants Punjab to beat the world in introducing coronavirus vaccine

    VIDEO: CM Buzdar wants Punjab to beat the world in introducing coronavirus vaccine

    Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar has said that the province is doing “groundbreaking research” as the global coronavirus pandemic continues to spread and he wants Pakistan to become the first country in the world to introduce vaccination for COVID-19.

    Even the most effective containment strategies have only slowed the spread of the respiratory disease while some 35 companies and academic institutions around the world are racing to create a vaccine that can prevent people from getting sick as COVID-19 leaves around 940,000 people infected globally with at least 47,000 fatalities.

    While the number of confirmed cases in Pakistan stands at 2,252 with at least 32 deaths and 107 recoveries, Buzdar’s Punjab is the worst-hit with 845 infections and Sindh is trailing behind at 709.

    “Pakistan could become the first country to prepare a vaccine for coronavirus with Punjab taking the lead in this regard,” the provincial chief executive said during a press conference in Lahore on Tuesday. “I will assure them [experts] that I will exhaust all available resources for the research.”

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Earlier, the Punjab CM had directed experts to accelerate research activities for the eradication of coronavirus.

    A meeting chaired by the provincial chief executive told that four study groups had been formed and research had been started under the supervision of the University of Health Sciences (UHS).

    CM Buzdar directed the experts to make fruitful efforts to deal with coronavirus as soon as possible. He was informed that a BSL-3 Lab had started working at Jinnah Hospital and Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI).

    The experts briefed the meeting that COVID-19 found in Pakistan was quite different from the coronavirus found in Wuhan and Iran.