No room to relax Covid-19 restrictions in province: Sindh CM

Sindh's Chief Minister, Murad Ali Shah, has said that his government cannot be complacent about Covid-19 restrictions across the province as cases arise.

Addressing a press conference in Karachi on Sunday, he said that Covid-19 cases are rising again because people are flouting standard operating procedures (SOPs). "There were 831 coronavirus cases reported on the first day of Shawwal. On Friday, more than 2,000 cases were reported," he said.

Commenting on the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC)'s decision to relax Covid-19 restrictions, he said that "experts part of the Provincial Coronavirus Task Force strictly advised us that this is the time for caution."

"Considering the current situation, there is no room for relaxation. We do not want [a repeat] of the situation from last June and July," he said.

Explaining that hospitals are filling up fast with Covid-19 patients, he said "You can't find beds at Aga Khan University Hospital and Indus Hospital. The Infectious Diseases Hospital is also full. We had closed down the Expo Centre facility, but we had to reopen it, and right now it is at 50 percent capacity."

"These [figures] are concerning and we can't turn a blind eye and move forward," he added.

Elaborating his government's decision to change business timings once again, he said "We had said earlier that markets would be allowed to remain open till 8 pm, but we are reverting back to 6 pm. A notification in this regard will be issued today."

"Marriage halls, business centers, expo halls, parks, indoor gyms, sports facilities are completely closed. Cinemas, beauty salons, shrines, and all tourist spots are closed for the next two weeks," he said.

Sindh extends restrictions by two weeks

The Sindh government decided on Saturday to extend the current Covid-19 restrictions in the province for another two weeks.

Chairing the coronavirus task force meeting on Saturday, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said that the province has seen a surge in cases after the Eid holidays. The CM noted that Sindh's Covid-19 positivity ratio is 8.8 percent, while Karachi's positivity ratio remained 13.97 %.

The task force decided to extend the closure of schools and other educational institutions till June 6. The meeting said that a decision on reopening educational institutions will be taken after the coronavirus situation improves.

For the next two weeks, Seaview, Hawksbay and public parks will remain closed. Similarly, department stores will also remain open till 6 pm, while public transports will operate with 50 percent of passengers. While, wedding halls will also remain closed during this period.

Meanwhile, Friday and Sunday have been declared as closed days in Karachi, while Friday and Saturday have been declared the same for Hyderabad.