Zubair Qureshi
Degree attestation section of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) has suspended walk-in mode of attestation and equivalence of degrees and diplomas at the HEC Islamabad office as well as all its regional centres at Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta.
The decision has been taken “in pursuance of instructions by the Government of Pakistan and in the wake of declaration of COVID-19 as Pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO).”
A notification issued by the HEC here Monday says suspension of services (degree attestations etc) would come to effect w.e.f. March 17 (today) and will remain in effect till further orders.
Besides suspension of services all scheduled appointments have been cancelled. In this regard SMS and emails have been sent to the applicants, the notification further says and they have been asked to reschedule their appointments.
Meanwhile, district governments of Rawalpindi and Islamabad have announced closure of public parks and markets with effect from Tuesday calling upon the residents to comply with these measures in the interests of the country and in their own interests.
A notice at the external gate of the Fatima Jinnah Park (F-9 Park) reads: public are advised to restrict their outside activities for a couple of weeks and try to remain indoors.
Meanwhile, the Islamabad District Administration has distributed 100,000 free masks in Islamabad. So far 250,00 masks have already been sold in the city. Deputy Commissioner of Islamabad, Hamza Shafqaat in a tweet urged the citizen to adopt SOP saying, “Everyone I request you to please stop buying masks if you don’t have symptoms. It is pointless and has almost no benefit for a normal person. Focus on social distancing and hand washing.”
Meanwhile, the Islamabad police has set up a control room which would ensure precautionary measures to prevent personnel of the force from Coronavirus.
The control room has been set up on the instructions of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad Muhammad Aamir Zulfiqar Khan.
According to a statement issued by the police on Monday, a meeting presided over by the Islamabad police chief has decided to take precautionary measures to prevent personnel from Coronavirus. The meeting was attended among others by all DIGs, SSPs and SPs.
The IGP directed to set up control room which would be monitored by all SSPs. All necessary safety materials (hand sanitizers, masks etc) would be provided to the policemen performing duties at police pickets or traffic duties on the road.
