Govt decides to extend lockdown until April 14: Asad Umar

ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday has decided to extend the ongoing lockdown for another two weeks until April 14 to contain the spread of novel coronavirus in the country.

This was announced by Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar who was addressing a press briefing after a meeting on the National Coordination Committee (NCC) held in Islamabad on the coronavirus crisis. PM’s special assistant on health Dr Zafar Mirza and national security Moeed Yousuf were also present in the news conference

Asad Umar said the forum will soon meet again to decide whether to relax or increase the restrictions. He said the lockdown throughout the country is showing results as the number of cases would have been much higher if steps were not taken in a timely manner to contain the virus.

The planning minister said that stranded overseas Pakistanis will be brought back to the country in a special PIA flight on April 4. The passengers will be first tested and sent for quarantine to ensure they do not spread the coronavirus. He said the international flights will resume from Islamabad airport followed by Karachi.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mirza outlined the number of cases, deaths and number of citizens tested for COVID-19 so far since the outbreak, sayin there was sharp increase in the number of cases in the country yesterday.

PM’s aide on national security Moeed Yusuf said seventeen PIA planes will be dispatched to different parts of the world to bring back 2,000 stranded Pakistanis.