ISLAMABAD: A two-member special task force from Pakistan Embassy Beijing visited the virus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan to meet Pakistani students in different universities and get first-hand information regarding their well-being and safety, the foreign office said on Tuesday. 

“The task force is permanently deployed in Wuhan and coordinating with Chinese authorities,” the foreign office statement read. “The task force would return to their homes in Beijing once the lockdown in Wuhan is lifted in its entirety and the on-ground situation is completely stabilized.”

Pakistan decided not to evacuate its students and other nationals from Wuhan after the epidemic began, making the concerned parents of locked-down students in China criticize the government and demand their children’s immediate return.

The matter was also discussed in the local media and national parliament, putting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf administration under pressure.

According to the foreign office, the two-member task force met the administrative staff in different universities to get first-hand information on the well-being and needs of the students. They also reported that all the students in the universities they visited today were safe, healthy and well looked after.

“All those in need of any medical attention are provided immediate and best available medical care,” the statement said. “Similarly, there is a provision of psychological counseling to those facing stress and depression.”

“Three Pakistani students at Guangzhou city and one in Wuhan who were infected by the coronavirus have fully recovered and discharged from the hospitals,” the foreign office press release added.

Pakistan’s diplomatic mission in China constituted an 11-member group to monitor the contagion and respond to the queries and requests of students. Among other things, it also organized a video conference of Pakistani nationals in Wuhan with relevant cabinet members in Islamabad.

“The situation in Wuhan and Hubei Province is showing increased signs of improvement,” the foreign office statement continued. “The number of daily reported infected cases is gradually decreasing, the markets and shopping places are being opened and courier services have been resumed.”