STAFF REPORTER
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali shah, keeping in view the COVID19 threat, has constituted a committee of health experts, labour and industries department secretaries and representatives of Police and rangers to prepare Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) for factories so that could be allowed to start operation. He took this decision on Sunday while presiding over a meeting to review the request of the industrialists to allow their units to start operation to meet the export orders. The meeting was attended by provincial ministers, DrAzraPechuho, SaeedGhani, IkramDharejo, Nasir Shah and Advisor Law MurtazaWahab, IG Sindh Mushtaq Maher, PSCMsajid Jamal Abro, Home Secretary UsmanChachar, Commissioner Karachi IftikharShahalwani, AdlIG Karachi GhulamNabiMemon, Secretary LabourRasheedSolangi and others. The chief Minister, at the outset, said that he had held a meeting with the Industrialists, particularly those who were producing goods for export and they have requested him to allow the operation of their factories so that they could honour the export orders. “The request is important and genuine, therefore a way out can be made for them,” he said. After thorough discussion and debate it was decided that an SOP should be worked out for operationalization of the factories. The chief minister directed the Additional chief secretary Home to form a committee comprising medical professionals/experts, Industries and labour secretaries, senior members of law enforcement agencies and other concerned to prepare a well-thought and workable SOP for operationalization of the factories. The chief secretary directed ACS home to issue notification for the committee and ask them to take the industrialists on board and frame SOP. “I want SOP for every sectors, including shops, bakeries, transport, super store, malls and even for holy month of Ramzan be framed so that after April 14, if lockdown is ease of that SOP(s) will be mandatory to follow,” he said. Moreover in a video statement, the CM said at least 123 people who recovered from the coronavirus in Sindh were not given any medicine and were only kept in isolation. He said that self-isolation was the best way to cure the virus. He added that the total number of knows cases in the province has jumped to 881. Shah said that the provincial government has formed a rapid response force in every district of Sindh. But he warned that the province’s health system would be under a lot of pressure if the virus spreads to low-income areas.
