ISLAMABAD: Planning Minister Asad Umar, who also heads the national pandemic response body, the NCOC, said on Monday it was “impossible” for Pakistan to block the Omicron coronavirus variant from entering the country and the only protection against it was to increase vaccinations.
The detection of Omicron has triggered global alarm as governments around the world scrambled to impose new travel curbs and financial markets sold-off, fearing the variant could resist vaccinations and upend a nascent economic reopening after a two-year global pandemic.
In its statement, the WHO said it was working with technical experts to understand the potential impact of the variant on existing countermeasures against COVID-19, including vaccines.
Addressing a press conference alongside Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health, Dr Faisal Sultan, Umar stressed the need for citizens to get vaccinated, saying the government would take new measures to protect against the Omicron variant. These include increased testing in high risk areas, and the launch of a booster shot program for high-risk segments of the population such as the elderly and the immunocompromised.
On Saturday, Pakistan banned travel from six South African countries and Hong Kong following the emergence of the new coronavirus variant.
“We can take measures to delay the entry into Pakistan of this variant, we can reduce its numbers, but it will spread all around the world,” Umar said. “As we saw before, once a new variant comes, the world is so interconnected, there is so much travel, that it is impossible to stop it. So what is the solution, what is in our hands? The answer is vaccination.”
“This is a very dangerous variant but vaccination will still be effective against it,” the minister said. "So it is my appeal to Pakistanis, particularly those who've gotten one dose, to get the second dose.”
"This variant will come to Pakistan, and we have the next 2-3 weeks to reduce its threat,” Umar added.
The Omicron variant spread around the world last week, with new cases found in the Netherlands, Denmark and Australia even as more countries imposed travel restrictions to try to seal themselves off.
WHO has said it was not yet clear whether Omicron, first detected in Southern Africa, is more transmissible than other variants, or if it causes more severe disease.
‘Impossible’ to stop Omicron variant from entering Pakistan – planning minister
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‘Impossible’ to stop Omicron variant from entering Pakistan – planning minister
- Pakistan to increase testing in high risk areas, launch booster shot program for high-risk segments of population
- Detection of Omicron has triggered global alarm as governments world over scrambled to impose new travel curbs
Pakistan warns of landslides, avalanche in hilly areas, urges caution
- At least nine people were killed when an avalanche struck a house in Chitral district this week
- Heavy snowfall may trigger road closures in several areas from Jan. 26 to 27, Met Office says
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Sunday warned of possible landslides and avalanches in hilly regions in the country’s north, urging residents, travelers and tourists to exercise caution.
Cloudy weather with intermittent rain, thunderstorm and snowfall is expected in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Balochistan and upper Punjab, while heavy rain with moderate to intense snowfall are likely in hilly areas on Jan. 26-27. Rain or thunderstorms are also likely in southern Punjab and upper Sindh during this period.
Heavy snowfall may cause road closure, slippery conditions in Naran, Kaghan, Dir, Swat, Kalam, Chitral, Kohistan, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Shangla, Astore, Hunza, Skardu, Murree, Galliyat, Neelum valley, Bagh, Poonch, Haveli, Quetta, Ziarat, Chaman, Pishin, Qilla Abdullah, Qilla Saifullah, Noushki, Harnai and Zhob, according to the PMD.
“[There is a] possibility of the landslides/avalanche in hilly areas of upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and [Azad] Kashmir during the period,” the Met Office said in a statement.
“Tourists are advised to remain extra cautious and avoid unnecessary traveling during the forecast period.”
The PMD statement came two days after at least nine people were killed while an injured child was rescued after an avalanche struck a house in KP’s Chitral district, according to officials.
Rescuers evacuated dozens of residents and tourists as heavy snow blocked roads in Khyber, South Waziristan and Swat districts, where authorities cleared routes and provided food, clothing and bedding, the Rescue 1122 service said.
Tens of thousands of tourists flock to Pakistan’s scenic north every winter to witness snowfall, often neglecting warnings from disaster management authorities.
In Jan. 2022, at least 21 people, including children, died after they were stuck in freezing temperatures during a snowstorm in the Pakistani hill station of Murree.
