Rising coronavirus cases: Curfew need of the hour

The novel coronavirus – emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan – has brought the world to a standstill. The outbreak has impacted the entire world in terms of human lives and the economy.

Pakistan ranks among the riskiest for the coronavirus and the real numbers of case infections have not been ascertained till now. The lockdown experiment in Pakistan has failed miserably, prompting reports of a curfew being imposed by the provinces.

Let’s take an in-depth review of the grim situation of the country.

Coronavirus cases in Pakistan

So far, the number of COVID-19 infections in Pakistan has reached 132,405. The deadly virus has claimed lives of more than 2,500 people in the country. Punjab has become the first province of the country to cross 50,000 coronavirus infections, with 2,705 new cases in the past 24 hours. Numbers here have already surpassed China, the origin of the novel virus.

Sindh has so far recorded 49,256 coronavirus cases, 16,415 cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 7,866 cases in Balochistan, 7,136 cases in Islamabad, 1,044 cases in Gilgit-Baltistan, and 574 cases in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

However, more than 50,000 have recovered from the coronavirus infection. Most of the cases are locally transmitted which emerged during the recent Eid holidays as people flouted all social distancing regulations and safety precautions.

Despite the observance of social distancing, many prominent personalities including parliamentarians have been infected while some have even succumbed to the virus.

Previous lockdown

The Sindh government showed great efficiency after the first coronavirus case came to light and imposed a lockdown to contain the outbreak. Punjab and other provinces gradually adopted the lockdown formula.

On May 7, Prime Minister Imran Khan announced to ease lockdown restrictions and opened various sectors of the economy in phases. All businesses were ordered to follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and implement social distancing.

However, the lockdown was not properly implemented in various cities of the country. People across the country are still not taking safety precautions seriously.

Several cases were reported in different parts of the country that police were taking the bribe and were allowing the shopkeepers to open their shops. Religious gatherings and processions also fueled the coronavirus infections.

The prime minister had addressed the nations on several occasions in the past few days and the only message is that the situation would worsen. He was also reluctant to impose a complete lockdown. The working class has been the most affected as thousands of labourers are furloughed and forced to sell their personal assets to make ends meet.

Pakistan’s hospitals

In Karachi and Lahore, hospitals are already struggling because of a sharp increase in COVID-19 patients in recent weeks. Some major private hospitals are turning away patients because of the shortage of beds.

In Karachi, home to more than 15 million people, 15 government, private, and charitable hospitals are dealing with coronavirus patients. The number of ventilators in those hospitals, according to official figures, is 136.

Just 539 beds and 200 ventilators are available for coronavirus patients in Lahore, according to Yasmeen Rashid, health minister for Punjab province.

Another Lockdown

The provincial government of Punjab and Sindh are considering the imposition of another lockdown if the coronavirus situation continues to get worse.

A startling report has been presented to Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar expressing concerns that there may alone be over half a million cases alone in Lahore. Sources have informed that strict lockdown may be imposed in Sindh and Punjab next week after the budget.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has expressed concerns over the rising number of cases but also reiterated that there is no going back to another lockdown.

Curfew, need of the hour

The Centre and the provinces have already tried the lockdown formula but the citizens are not taking safety precautions that are affecting other people along with them.

The economy will take its own time to stumble back to its doddering feet. However, lives matter more. There is no choice but to impose a curfew across the country in order to contain the outbreak of the coronavirus.