Sindh to go in complete lockdown till August 8

KARACHI: In the wake of the recent surge in the coronavirus cases, the Sindh government on Friday announced a complete lockdown from Saturday till August 8 across the province.

According to a notification issued by the provincial authorities, both the government and private offices will remain closed, while anyone travelling will be required to carry their vaccination certificates.

It has also been decided that a few industries will be exempted from the lockdown; however, the industries have not yet been specified. Export industries will operate, as usual.

Only pharmacies will remain open, whereas all other markets and shopping centres will be closed.

Moreover, the Sindh government, in line with the federal government, has announced to hold salaries of government employees who fail to get vaccinated before August 31.

According to the notification, intercity transport will also remain suspended from tomorrow (Saturday).

A day earlier, the federal government set August 31 as the deadline for the Covid vaccination; following which only vaccinated staff and people will be allowed to enter both public and private sector offices, including educational institutes, and travel in public transport.

“We want people do their routine businesses…, we want nobody loses their job …and whatever measures we are taking are for public good, so people should take care of their health and vaccinate themselves,” Minister for Planning Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar had said, while addressing a press conference.

A total of 86 deaths have been reported across the country in the last 24 hours with 4,537 new positive cases.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), 58,203 tests were conducted, while the positivity ratio remained at 7.79 per cent.

The death toll due to the pandemic in the country has reached 23,293.

The total number of confirmed cases have reached 377,231 in Sindh, while 5,947 deaths have been reported across the province since the onset of the virus.

Later in the evening, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, in his press conference, requested people to support the provincial government’s decision and follow SOPs.

“Delta variant can affect at least five people at the same time,” he said, adding that more than 3,000 people have been affected during the last three days.

He further said that grocery shops, pharmacies and petro pumps would be functional while eateries can only offer takeaway.

“Karachi Stock Exchange, Karachi Port Trust would be opened, while banks would ensure minimum staff is present,” he further elaborated.

He said the government will try increasing the capacity of the hospitals during lockdown.

Murad further said that people will be allowed to use private transports only to reach vaccination centers.

He further said that a provincial task force will oversee the situation during the lockdown while all retail shops would be closed till August 9.

He further warned that hospitals are already running out space and if the current trend continues soon beds will not be available in the hospitals.

“If people help the government and follow the SOPs, we would be able to lift the lockdown on August 9,” he commented.