2,000 travellers quarantined in ‘tent city’
KARACHI: The Sindh government was informed that over 2,000 pilgrims who had travelled to Iran from across the province have been placed in quarantine for coronavirus in Taftan, Balochistan.
The quarantined individuals have been placed in a “tent city” set up by the Balochistan government for Pakistani nationals entering the country from Iran.
“We are in contact with the Balochistan government,” said Sindh health department spokesperson Meeran Yousuf, adding that the families of those who have been placed in quarantine had also reached out to the provincial government.
Given the current situation, the health department has advised Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to send rations for the people of Sindh in the tent city. “We understand the burden on the Balochistan government and want to reduce it,” explained Yousuf.
Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has ordered the relevant officials to purchase 5,000 coronavirus testing kits, while chairing a cabinet meeting, following the confirmation of second coronavirus case in Karachi and surfacing of multiple suspected cases. He said so far, 53 tests for coronavirus cases from Sindh have been conducted, of which only two have been confirmed.
Shah told the cabinet that the government has released Rs100 million for adopting preventive measures and to deal with any emergencies pertaining to coronavirus cases.”
The chief minister said that a taskforce was formed to deal with problem at the time of the confirmation of the first case and meeting had been held regularly since then.
“I have been holding taskforce meetings, in which all relevant authorities and officials, including airport and aviation officials, Federal Investigation Agency, National Database and Registration Authority and World Health Organisation representatives, besides doctors participate.”
Shah shared with the meeting that isolation wards, housing 118 beds, had been established at
nine hospitals across Sindh.
The Sindh education department suspended the registration of 58 private educational institutions in the province, for violating the government’s orders to remain closed until March 13 amid fears about coronavirus.
Regional teams in all of Sindh’s divisions visited 422 private schools to check their compliance with the order, which had been issued a day earlier in order to allow the completion of the quarantine period by suspected coronavirus patients.