QUETTA: Balochistan government authorities have imposed smart lockdown in the province due to an alarming increase in COVID-19 cases.
According to the notification issued by  Balochistan Home and Tribal Affairs Department on Saturday, the restrictions will come into effect from 12:00 midnight (Night between Friday and Saturday) till May 1.
The notification further said all borders of the province will remain completely closed, while commercial activities will remain suspended on Saturdays and Sundays, including shopping malls and bazaars.
On weekdays, the markets will remain open from Sehar to 6:00 pm, the Home Department said, adding that all indoor and outdoor activities will remain banned until further notice.
The Home Department further said that restaurants will be allowed to serve outdoor meals beginning from the time of Iftar till midnight with strict COVID-19 SOPs while takeaways will be allowed.
All kinds of gatherings (indoor and outdoor) will remain banned that include social, cultural, political sports and other events while people will be allowed to offer Taraweeh prayers in open spaces as far as possible. There will also be a 50 percent work-from-home policy for offices.
Inter-provincial public transport will remain suspended on Saturdays and Sundays while intercity public transport will be allowed to operate at 50 percent capacity, read the notification.
Pakistan on Saturday surpassed the grim milestones of 750,000 cases and 16,000 deaths from the novel coronavirus amid the worsening condition during the third wave of the pandemic.
The death toll from the novel coronavirus cross the grim milestone of 16,000 as the nation reported another 112 deaths on Saturday as the government mulls over-tightening restrictions
According to the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), Pakistan reported 4,149 coronavirus cases in the past day as the total number of cases surged to 750,158. There were another 112 deaths from the virus, taking the death toll to 16,094
The total number of active cases has surged to 79,108 while the positivity rate stood at 7.62 percent. There are 4,149 patients who remain in critical condition in hospitals across the country.
