The Pakistani authorities sealed the Pak-Afghan Chaman border Monday morning over fears that the coronavirus would be spread to the country. It has been sealed for an initial period of seven days and could be extende as Afghanistan has also reported coronavirus cases. So far, the authorities have just sealed the Chaman border. The border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is still open.
The Directorate of Inspection and Registration of Private Institutions Sindh Karachi has suspended the registration of over 25 schools in Karachi for not shutting down on Monday. The Sindh government announced that all schools in Karachi would remain closed till March 13 in a bid to prevent students from coronavirus. Private schools director-general Mansoob Siddiqui had ordered inspection teams to check whether schools were open.
Prime Minister Imran Khan launched the multi-billion Islamabad Blue Area commercial project. Taking to Twitter, the prime minister announced that the project will provide jobs and attract investment from overseas Pakistanis. The commercial auctions will be held from April 14-16 and the funds will be used to rehabilitate the city, in the provision of services and to improve the environment.
The federal government has imposed a ban on the export of onions and red chillies with immediate effect till May 31, as revealed in a notification. The decision to impose a ban was taken by the cabinet in the Economic Coordination Committee meeting on February 19. However, the decsion would cost millions of dollars to fruit and vegetables exporters.
The government of Sindh has decided to close all private and government educational institutions till March 13 as a precautionary measure to protect students from coronavirus. The news was confirmed by provisional minister Sindh. According to a statement issued by the Sindh CM house, at least 738 people have arrived in Karachi from Iran and over 13,000 people are still at the Taftan border. Their families will also be screened by the health authorities.
After multiple reservations from the Asia Internet Coalition, the government has halted the implementation of its law to regulate social media. In a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan, the coalition expressed its disapproval over the law. It threatened that if the regulation is not taken back, services of social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Google will no longer be provided in the country.
Two new coronavirus cases have been reported in Pakistan, taking the total number of cases in the country to four. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza confirmed this in a press conference on Saturday. One of the patients is from Karachi while the second case was confirmed in the federal areas. The health department said this new case is unrelated to the previous case reported in Karachi of a 22-year-old male.
The European Union (EU) has agreed to provide a €13 million grant to Pakistan to improve its fiscal policies and budget preparations. The agreement was signed in the presence of Minister for Economic Affairs Hammad Azhar, who added that the grant will help Pakistan with macro-fiscal policies, budget processes, and forecasting. Azhar said that the public financial support would be utilized at Sindh, Balochistan and at a federal level.
The Pakistani government has decided to suspend all flights to and from Iran after the confirmation of Coronavirus cases in the country, officials from Aviation Division have confirmed. The suspension shall remain enacted until further notice. Following the outbreak of the deadly virus in Iran, the government also suspended bus and train service between Pakistan and Iran.
A crackdown has been initiated in Islamabad against those selling surgical masks at high prices amid panic in the country about the coronavirus outbreak. One man was arrested after a medical store in A-11 was raided as he was selling a Rs5 mask for Rs120. Additional Deputy Commissioner Omer Randhawa headed the raids conducted in several of Islamabad’s medical stores.