Lockdown to be imposed in COVID-19 hotspot cities in May, NCOC formats an interim plan

The National Command and Operations Center (NCOC) has sent a letter to ministries and administrations to impose a lockdown in COVID-19 hotspot cities in May.

The letter states an interim plan for lockdowns in districts and cities with high corona cases.

As per the NCOC recommendation, a two-week lockdown will take effect on May 2 or 3.

Lockdown will be imposed in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Bahawalpur, Hyderabad, Lower Dir, Mardan, Nowshera, Malakand, Charsadda, Swat, and Swabi.

The letter also said that consultations were held on installing lockdowns in Muzaffarabad, Sadhnauti, Poonch, and Bagh. Appropriate measures have been directed to prevent the spread of corona in the respective cities.

According to the statistics issued by NCOC, the country’s COVID positivity rate has surged to 10.77% as of April 28.

While the country recorded 201 deaths on Tuesday, the highest single-day coronavirus death toll since the pandemic started.

NCOC a day earlier has imposed a complete ban on tourism in the country starting from May 8 to 16.

Furthermore, the inter-provincial and inter-city transport to remain suspended on Eid.

An official notification in this regard has also been issued by the Interior Ministry, listing the latest decisions taken by the NCOC.

“Travel nodes leading to tourist spots [will also remain] closed; focus on [the areas of] Murree, Galiyat, Swat-Kalam, Sea View/beaches and the Northern Areas [will remain],” stated the notification.