Title: NCOC revises SOPs as Covid-19's fourth wave gathers strength
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The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the nerve centre of the country's response to the Covid-19 pandemic, has revised its guidelines for a number of cities as the fourth wave of the pandemic gains strength.
Announcing the revised guidelines, NCOC chief and federal minister Asad Umar said that the government is taking "targeted and staggered" decisions to curb the spread of the pandemic – now mostly fueled by the highly transmissible Delta variant.
Umar said the latest decisions have been taken with the prime minister permission as virus cases and positivity ratio has increased.
According to the new guidelines, markets will now be closed at 8pm instead of 10pm and the government has also decided to resume the 50pc work from home policy.
Indoor and outdoor dining has also been closed, with delivery and takeaway permitted.
The new restrictions will be applicable from August 3 till August 31 and will be applicable in the cities of Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Muzaffarabad, Mirpur, Faisalabad, Multan, Abbottabad, Peshawar, Karachi, Hyderabad, Gilgit and Skardu.
Earlier, the NCOC said that individuals from the service sector should be vaccinated by August 31, or will not be permitted to work.
Umar had stated that all those who work in the service sector, including transport workers, shop keepers, bankers, NADRA employees – or any job which requires dealing with a large number of people – must be vaccinated against the Covid-19 before August 31.
“Students above 18 years of age should also be vaccinated by August 31”, he had added.
Umar had reiterated that those travelling by air from Aug 1 onwards must have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Additionally, school and college teachers should also be vaccinated by Aug 1 and he observed that statistics from last week show that 80 per cent of teachers had been vaccinated in the country.
Published Date: 02-Aug-2021
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