No mask, no entry: Federal Secretariat out of bounds for SOPs violators
Zubair Qureshi
Coronavirus situation is getting worse with the passage of every day as erstwhile ratio of 300 cases’ increase everyday almost doubled on Sunday registering 600 in last 24 hours and taking the tally of cases to 5,000. On Saturday the number was 4,377.
Likewise the number of deaths with three during the last 24 hours became 49. While talking to Pakistan Observer District Health Officer of Islamabad Dr Zaeem Zia expressed fears the ratio as well as number of new cases might grow at an unprecedented rate in the coming days and Islamabad being the transit city for Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK), Kashmir, Punjab and KP and Covid-19 incidence rate here is high.
Another reason behind this overwhelming number of Covid-19 cases can be traced by the fact that residents of Islamabad have started returning from Eidul Fitr holidays and majority of them are from the urban areas of the city. There is every possibility that with them they might have brought the virus from their native towns and cities, said Dr Zaeem. In the coming days we can see a monumental rise in number of new cases from the urban localities of Islamabad, said Dr Zaeem.
According to Islamabad’s DHO, the best strategy against virus is to wear masks, wash hands and above all, stay at home. Unless we strict follow the SOPs we cannot expect to lower the number of Covid-19 cases, he further said.
The city has become the third-highest number of coronavirus induced deaths per million population in the country and according to a recent report, as of June 3—reported 2,610 cases per million population are being reported in Islamabad.
Meanwhile, Capital Development Authority (CDA) has restricted entry of people without masks in its main secretariat. The latest restriction is valid both for CDA employees as well as visitors.
Steamers and banners have been displayed at all entry gates in this regard announcing there will be no entrance into federal secretariat for those who are not wearing masks. Security personnel have also been directed not to allow entry to any person without mask.
According to CDA spokesperson, the CDA Administration has directed Security Directorate to comply with these directions.
CDA administration has further directed to make sure that preventive measures against Covid-19 are observed during working at CDA Headquarters.
Accordingly Administration Directorate of Capital Development Authority has issued circular regarding preventive measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19 whereby all the employees of the Authority have been directed to strictly follow anti Covid-19 SOPs. Through the same circular, all employees have been directed to make sure use of hand gloves, sanitizers and masks during office hours. Hand sanitizers are also being placed at CDA premises for bulk usage by staff and visitors.
