KARACHI: A 15-day micro-smart lockdown has been imposed in Karachi’s District East on Saturday after 12 cases of Omicron variant of coronavirus were reported from the area.
According to a notification issued by the deputy commissioner’s office, the lockdown was imposed in Gulshan-e-Iqbal’s Block 7 area and other hotspots on the report of the district health officers.
After the imposition of the smart lockdown, there will be a ban on all sorts of public gatherings in the area, the notification said, adding that the government will strictly enforce the implementation of the standard operating procedures (SOPs).
“Besides mandatory mask-wearing and social distancing interventions, it is also fundamental to ensure isolation, contact tracing and testing being the three pillars of TTT (TTQ) strategy of the government for the containment of Covid-19,” it added.
However, grocery shops/convenience stores, bakeries and pharmacies shall be allowed to remain open in the area during specific timings as per the directives issued by the National Command and Operating Center (NCOC), the notification read. The restrictions will remain in place till Jan 14 to avert a health crisis.
On Tuesday, the National Institute of Health confirmed 75 cases of the Omicron strain of Covid-19 across the country. “The first case of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 was reported on December 13 in Karachi. As of December 27, 2021, a total of 75 Omicron cases have been confirmed – 33 in Karachi, 17 in Islamabad and 13 in Lahore,” it had added.
