OBSERVER REPORT
ISLAMABAD Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza has said that a large number of hand sanitisers being sold across the country is of “low quality”. Dr Zafar Mirza asked the public not to consider projections about the rise of Covid-19 cases being made by experts “the last word”, saying they are only estimates. For sanitisers to be effective against viruses, they should have 70 per cent alcohol content while this is not the case with many products being sold, he told a press conference. “At this stage, it is uncertain whether these figures based on different scenarios and assumptions are true or not,” he said, adding that the government is keeping a close eye on the evolving situation. He was apparently alluding to a report submitted by the government to the Supreme Court in which Covid-19 cases in Pakistan are projected to rise sharply over the next 20 days. Dr Mirza stressed the need to rationally use PPEs (personal protective equipment) adding such equipment including N95 masks should be used only by frontline healthcare workers. Meanwhile, three more deaths have been reported and the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to 2,754 on Saturday, after more cases were reported in Islamabad, Punjab, Sindh and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Sindh which entered 13th day of lockdown, reported 14 deaths and 830 cases as of Saturday. Punjab, leading the tally of confirmed cases, noted 1,087 cases and 11 deaths. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 373 coronavirus cases and 11 fatalities, while Gilgit-Baltistan had three deaths and 194 infections and Balochistan 185 cases. Punjab’s Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department has confirmed 18 new cases of coronavirus, taking the provincial tally to 1,087. According to the department, Covid-19 cases have been reported from 26 districts of the province so far. Among cities, Lahore has the highest number of cases — 210.
