LAHORE: The government of Punjab on Saturday renewed its guidelines against Covid-19, deciding to set up special counters at places frequented by people – such as wedding halls, cinemas and hotels – to check Covid-19 vaccination certificates of visitors.
“Those violating the standard operating procedures (SOPs) will face action as per law,” said Sarah Aslam, Punjab Primary & Secondary Healthcare Department Secretary, in a statement issued today.
The provincial government also decided to set up a control room to oversee the implementation of SOPs in restaurants, wedding halls, movie theatres, and hotels.
The new SOPs are being implemented in response to an increase in Covid-19 cases across the country.
The NCOC had previously confirmed the presence of various coronavirus variants in Pakistan, including the Delta variant, which was first discovered in India, the Beta variant, which was first discovered in South Africa, and the Alpha variant, which was first discovered in the United Kingdom.
These variants were discovered in Pakistan in May and June, according to the NCOC.
On June 25, the number of daily Covid-19 cases dropped from four to three, according to the government’s Covid-19 portal. The number of daily cases reported stayed around 900 until June 27, then dropped to 735 on June 28.
The number of cases gradually increased again, eventually doubling in just one week.
The positivity rate has increased from less than 2% in June to more than 2% now crossed 3% after a gap of 20 days on Wednesday.
The new guidelines are being implemented in accordance with the NCOC’s directives, which were issued just a day ago.
The special SOPs have been developed for hotels, restaurants, wedding halls, gyms, and movie theatres, and that counters would be set up at all of these locations to check people’s vaccination certificates.
The secretary emphasised that Covid-19 vaccines were available in “sufficient quantity” at inoculation centres across the province and urged people to get vaccinated and follow the government’s precautionary measures to ensure public safety.
The NCOC announced a day ago that beginning August 1, unvaccinated people will not be allowed to fly.
The NCOC declared it mandatory for adult students to get vaccinated by August 31 as part of its review of the measures put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus, particularly in light of the spread of the Delta variant, which it described as “extremely dangerous.”
Two days ago, the NCOC convened a special meeting of provincial chief secretaries to discuss control measures.
The NCOC declared it mandatory for adult students to get vaccinated by August 31 as part of its review of the measures put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus, particularly in light of the spread of the Delta variant, which it described as “extremely dangerous.”
Two days ago, the NCOC convened a special meeting of provincial chief secretaries to discuss control measures.
During the meeting, the federating and administrative units were told to take harsh measures against anyone who broke the SOPs and to speed up the vaccination process so that herd immunity could be achieved as soon as possible.
