Offices to close at 2pm
Staff Reporter Islamabad
In the wake of increasing coronavirus cases, the federal government on Friday, announcing further restrictions to stop the spread of the pandemic, said schools will remain closed in areas with positivity ratio of more than five percent while outdoor dining has also been banned till Eid after indoor dining.
The National Command and Operation Center Head Asad Umar, sharing an alarming situation, said that the country has already utilized 90 percent of the available oxygen stocks. He, however, said that steps would be taken to improve the oxygen supply.
He said offices will close at 02:00 pm and asked people to complete their Eid preparations without waiting for last days to avoid large gatherings.
The NCOC head said that the country is witnessing a surge in Covid cases and plans are in the making to impose further travel restrictions from abroad. “Effective testing will be performed on the travellers from abroad,” he said.
Umar said that restaurants will remain closed until Eid, with complete ban on indoor and outdoor dine-in.
“We have restricted attendance in offices to 50 percent with duty hours restricted to 2:00 pm,” he said adding that the business centres will be closed by 6:00 pm in the wake of rising cases.
“Shopping will only be allowed in the morning,” he said while urging citizens to avoid waiting for last three to five days for Eid shopping.
He further shared that all schools in areas witnessing a positivity rate of five percent will remain shut.
Pakistan on Friday reported 144 more coronavirus-related deaths during the last 24 hours, lifting the overall death toll to 16,842.
According to the National Command and Operation Centre on Covid-19, the country reported 5,870 new cases during the said period.
