LAHORE: The Punjab government has set up quarantine centers in different cities of the province to isolate suspected coronavirus patients in areas under its jurisdiction, said a spokesperson of the provincial authority on Wednesday, adding that the one established in Multan is the biggest in the country.
“The government has set up quarantine centers in Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Lahore, Muzaffargarh, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur and other cities of the province,” Sabir Bokhari, a spokesperson of the provincial administration, told Arab News. “The biggest center has been set up in Multan where 6,000 people can be kept at one time. The staff at these facilities have also been given special kits and medical equipment to deal with different emergencies.”
The provincial administration has also set up a quarantine center at Dera Ghazi Khan that can host 780 patients while another center in Bahawalpur will be able to accommodate 1,276 pilgrims coming from the Taftan border.
The centers have been set up to save citizens from the spread of coronavirus in the country. The outbreak that began in a small Chinese town of Wuhan was recently declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization due to the rising number of infections across the world.
In Punjab, the authorities declared 26 confirmed cases of coronavirus until Wednesday afternoon.
“There are 26 confirmed patients of coronavirus in the province. Out of these, 20 are pilgrims [who returned from Iran], five are from Lahore and another one is from Gujrat. Thirty-nine suspected patients are in isolation at the moment,” reads the latest bulletin by the Department of Primary and Secondary Healthcare.
The province’s apex committee on coronavirus met in Lahore on Wednesday under Chief Minister Usman Buzdar. Among others, the meeting was also attended by Corps Commander Lahore, Lt. Gen. Majid Ehsan, General Officer Commanding 10-Division, Maj. Gen. Muhammad Aneeq-ur-Rehman Malik, DG Rangers Punjab, Maj. Gen. Muhammad Amir Majeed, Law Minister Raja Basharat and Health Minister Dr Yasmeen Rashid.
“During the meeting, the chief minister said the quarantine centers had been set up in southern Punjab and that his administration was doing its best to defeat the virus. The corps commander said that the military establishment was extending its full cooperation to the government since it was a national cause to overcome the disease,” Muhammad Rafiullah, the chief minister’s public relations officer, told Arab News. “The establishment of a quarantine center at Taftan was also considered during the meeting while another proposal to convert the Hajj terminal in Lahore into a temporary isolation unit was also reviewed.”
Fearing increase in number of suspected coronavirus cases in Lahore, the authorities recently visited the campuses of Engineering University and GC University at Kala Shah Kaku, some 19 kilometers west of Lahore, and declared them fit for setting up quarantine camps.
“The commissioner and deputy commissioner have visited the sites. These education facilities can be converted into quarantine centers, if required. Arrangements are complete to meet any urgency or emergency arising from the threat of coronavirus,” Imran Maqbool, spokesperson at the DC office in Lahore, told Arab News.
Punjab sets up biggest quarantine center in Pakistan to fight coronavirus
https://arab.news/8q37p
Punjab sets up biggest quarantine center in Pakistan to fight coronavirus
- Provincial administration officials say the facility in Multan can accommodate 6,000 patients at once
- The country's military establishment is fully cooperating with the civilian administration to defeat the pandemic, says Corpse Commander Lahore
Pakistan highlights Gwadar transshipment role as shipping routes face disruption over regional tensions
- Pakistani ports possess “untapped potential” to attract global shipping lines for transshipment operations, says minister
- Pakistan eyes leveraging Gwadar as regional transshipment hub as Iran’s closure of Strait of Hormuz disrupts global maritime trade
KARACHI: Pakistan’s Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry on Thursday highlighted the importance of the port city of Gwadar’s transshipment role as major shipping routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, face disruption due to Iran’s ongoing conflict with the US and Israel in the Gulf.
The meeting takes place as Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway that lies between it and Oman. It is one of the world’s most critical oil transit routes, with roughly 20 percent of global oil supplies passing through it. Iran has vowed it will attack any ship that enters the strait, causing energy prices to rise sharply on Monday amid disruptions to tanker traffic in the waterway.
Gwadar is a deep-sea port in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province that lies close to the Strait of Hormuz. Pakistani officials have in the past highlighted Gwadar’s geostrategic position as the shortest trade route to the Gulf and Central Asia, stressing that it has the potential to become a regional transshipment hub.
Chaudhry chaired a high-level meeting of government officials to assess emerging logistical challenges facing Pakistan’s trade, particularly in the energy sector, amid tensions in the Gulf.
“Special focus was placed on fully leveraging the potential of Gwadar Port as a regional transshipment hub and positioning it as an alternative of regional instability,” Pakistan’s maritime affairs ministry said in a statement.
The minister said Pakistani ports possessed “significant untapped potential” to attract international shipping lines for transshipment operations, noting that it could also ensure long-term sustainability and growth of the country’s maritime sector.
Participants of the meeting discussed measures to strengthen Pakistan’s position as a viable alternative transit and transshipment destination, as key waterways are affected by the disruption.
The committee also reviewed proposals to amend relevant rules and regulations to facilitate international transshipment operations through on-dock and off-dock terminals.
The chairmen of the Port Qasim Authority, Karachi Port Trust and Gwadar Port Authority attended the meeting, briefing committee members on the current operational readiness of their ports. They spoke about the available capacity for container transshipment, bulk cargo handling and refueling services at Pakistani ports.
The port in Gwadar is a central part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), under which Beijing has funneled tens of billions of dollars into massive transport, energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan.
Pakistan has long eyed the deep-sea port as a key asset that can help boost its trade with Central Asian states, the Gulf region and ensure the country earns valuable foreign exchange.
