Pakistan to receive coronavirus detection kits today

• The kits are being provided by Japan and would reach the National Institute of Health (NIH) Islamabad.
• Pakistan has also sought help of the WHO to provide them thermal scanner guns.

Pakistan would receive the detection kit to detect the deadly coronavirus today (Friday), as the epidemic of coronavirus spreads around the globe.

As per reports, the kits are being provided by Japan and would reach the National Institute of Health (NIH) Islamabad. The coronavirus detection kits would allow health officials to test at least 1,000 samples for the lethal virus.

Earlier, it was learnt that the country is facing a shortage of thermal scanner guns at its airports and has sought the help of World Health Organization (WHO) for this purpose. The WHO has assured Pakistan to provide 100 thermal scanner guns. By using the thermal scanners, the human body temperature can be tested without touching and the detection of coronavirus suspects is also possible.

Meanwhile, the government of Pakistan has decided that it will not evacuate Pakistanis from coronavirus-hit China, said Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health (SAPM) Dr Zafar Mirza on Thursday.

Mirza said that as per the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), the government of Pakistan has decided in principle to not evacuate stranded Pakistanis from Wuhan and other parts of China following coronavirus breakout. He said that so far 170 people have been killed by the coronavirus and another 7,831 people have been positively diagnosed including four Pakistani students.

He said that the government will demonstrate responsible behavior and not become a part in spreading the virus as the Pakistanis in China are being treated in the best possible ways.