Pakistan to lift COVID-19 Lockdown partially from Saturday

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan along with the NCC apex decision-making body decides to lift the Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown partially from May 9, 2020 (Saturday).

“We have decided to do this in phases because many people are facing a lot of difficulties and we cannot continue with it,” PM Khan said while speaking to the media after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee.

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar had proposed to ease lockdown restriction after May 9.

The NCC meeting chaired by Prime Minister reviewed the current situation of the coronavirus pandemic in the country and has taken the decision to lift the lockdown in phases starting from May 9, 2020.

The Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood suggested provinces to keep all the education insitutions closed.

Earlier in the day, Punjab, Balochistan, and Sindh, in an inter-provincial education ministers conference, had opposed reopening educational institutions after June 1.

The recommendation to open phase II of construction sector and the opening of retail outlets related to the industry was also reviewed.

The Government did not make any changes in SOPs for religious festivities in the second half of the Holy Month of Ramadan.

Meanwhile, Sindh is expected to continue lockdown till Eid-Ul-Fitr as Karachi one of the worst affected city by Coronavirus. However, Chief Minister Sindh will update about the situation.

The total number of coronavirus in Pakistan has surged to 24,041 after more than 1,500 cases were reported on Wednesday, 6 May 2020, by respective provincial departments for the mentioned date.

Apart from cases, 38 more fatalities were also reported bringing the country’s death toll to 564.

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