Only vaccinated citizens to be allowed to go on tours: Faisal
Hotels of KP, GB and AJK have been directed not to provide rooms to those people who have not been vaccinated. Moreover, special teams will be deployed to stop them from entering tourist destinations
Pakistan’s health officials fear the fourth wave of COVID-19 as the infections continue to rise in the country.
They apprehend that the situation may worsen by Eid Al Adha.
Adviser to Prime Minister on Health, Dr Faisal Sultan, urged local tourists on Monday to get vaccinated before taking holiday trips across Pakistan.
Speaking on behalf of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) and health ministry regarding tourism, Sultan said that only vaccinated people will be allowed to go on tours.
“This restriction will be strictly implemented during the upcoming Eid Al Adha holidays,” Faisal observed during a press conference in Islamabad.
“Vaccine is a vital strategy against coronavirus, apart from face mask and other standard operating procedures (SOPS),” the PM’S aide stated, urging the masses to get immunised against the corona virus disease.
The NCOC has amended standard operating procedures for some of the sectors, including tourism.
According to the NCOC, it has been decided that the SOPS would be strictly implemented to avoid chances of a complete lockdown across the country. People lacking vaccination certificates will not be allowed to enter tourist spots in GilgitBaltistan (GB), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir ( AJK) during Eid holidays.
The data of the NCOC showed that 1,808 new virus cases have been reported on Monday.
Meanwhile, 670 patients recovered from the deadly disease in a day taking total recoveries to 913,873.
According to NCOC, total active COVID-19 cases across the country were reported to be 38,622.
Earlier 2,028 cases were reported on June 2 and since then fewer numbers of cases were being reported. The lowest number of cases was reported on June 21 when only 663 persons were infected.
According to the data, there were 37,499 active cases as of July 11, out of which 2,390 patients were admited to hospitals. The number of active cases was around 31,000 last month but it started increasing in the last week of June.
The NCOC warned that there are high chances of virus spread on the occasion of Eid Al Adha as the people are violating the SOPS.
“There are a number of variants of the COVID-19 so there is more need to ensure implementation of the SOPS in high-risk sectors. All provinces have been directed to take steps to curtail spread of the virus and establish teams to ensure that people wear masks and maintain social distancing,” the NCOC said.
The provinces have been advised to ensure that people strictly adhere to the SOPS in the catle markets.
Hotels of KP, GB and Azad Kashmir have been directed not to provide rooms to those people who have not been vaccinated. Moreover, special teams will be deployed to stop such people from entering tourist destinations.
The provinces have been further directed to ensure that non-vaccinated people do not enter restaurants, gymnasiums, cinemas and wedding halls. Moreover, it will also be verified whether vaccination certificates are genuine.
An official of the Ministry of the National Health Services said that bus stops, railway stations, catle markets, intercity transport terminals, markets and mosques were major source of virus spread.
The NCOC has issued a checklist for district administrations and they have been directed to take strict action against the violators,” he said. “We appeal to the masses to get themselves vaccinated so that they are protected and do not become sources of virus spread,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lahore district administration sealed multiple restaurants and shops over violation of SOPS that could lead towards possible spread of the deadly virus.
Assistant Commissioner (Model Town) Ibrahim Arbab reviewed the SOPS and found violations and sealed a number of eateries and shops. He also issued warnings to various shops located in City Town.
In a separate incident, Assistant Commissioner (City) Faizan Ahmed along with his team reviewed the SOPS implementation in markets and sealed Goga Naqiba Chanay, Body Shapes gym, Muscles Hub gym and digital lab over violations.