Daily Times

Balochistan and Sindh governments on Sunday sought the Pakistan Army’s assistance to combat the deadly coronavirus.

According to details, Balochistan government has written a letter for giving civil authority to the army under Article 245 in order to curb the spread of the virus.

On the other hand, the Sindh government has requested the federation to send army soldiers for the help of civil administration under Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) in imposing lockdown.

Meanwhile, the Punjab chief minister (CM) has also decided to contact the military for assistance and vowed to use all the resources for saving the lives of people from coronavirus.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government has decided to close shopping malls, markets, parks and public places until Tuesday.

The decision was made in the cabinet committee meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar in Lahore.

Speaking on the occasion, the CM said the government was not taking steps of lockdown but urged the masses to practice social distancing and stay at home.

He said a thousand-bed hospital would be set up in Lahore, while five hospitals were completely earmarked for coronavirus patients across the province.

The meeting was informed that shops selling milk, yogurt, general stores, meat, petrol pumps, pharmacy, bakeries, naan shops, tandoors, fruits and vegetables markets will remain open. The meeting was further informed that public transport will not be closed; however, masses should avoid unnecessary travel.

Later, briefing the media through video link, the chief minister said Chinese doctors would visit Pakistan to provide assistance in treatment to corona patients. He said consultations were underway with the private institutions to reduce the coronavirus test fee.

On the other hand, the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Sunday decided to suspend hearing of the civil cases at high court and district courts of the province till the next order.

The high court and lower courts will only hear criminal cases and bail petitions. The high court has announced the decision in view of the situation that has emerged in the wake of the novel coronavirus cases.

The Registrar Sindh High Court in an order said that the district courts won’t hear civil cases. The cases at principal seat of the high court and its Sukkur, Hyderabad and Larkana circuit benches have been delisted.

The high court office has also directed all ladies’ staff to remain at their homes. The registrar office has also directed the staff members above 50 years’ of age to remain at homes.

Moreover, employees of the banking court and special courts aged 50 and above will also be exempted from attending the office. Such staff members will remain at emergency call, the registrar office further announced.

The judges, chairmen and heads of the district and special courts will remain present in their offices, the order further said. Also, in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus, the intercity bus service will remain suspended in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) from today (March 23) for seven days.

The local authorities have shut markets and shopping malls while bakeries, vegetable markets and grocery stores will be opened.

Adviser to KP Chief Minister on Information Ajmal Wazir pledged to defeat coronavirus with high spirit and determination. The provincial government has also established a control room for coronavirus pandemic at Chief Minister’s Secretariat in Peshawar, he told.

Over in the federal capital, the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration on Sunday notified new measures in an effort to contain the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19). According to details, the civic administration ordered the closure of all shopping malls and restaurants in Islamabad for a week.

The notification said grocery stores will shut at 8pm instead of 10pm in the capital city.