Pakistan bans indoor dining, markets to stay open till 8pm

Indoor dining in all major cities across Pakistan has been banned and markets will be allowed to stay open till 8pm, the NCOC announced Monday.

In a media briefing in Islamabad, Federal Planning Minister Asad Umar said that the government has decided to tighten coronavirus restrictions as the country continues to battle the fourth wave of the novel coronavirus.

Here are the new SOPs announced after permission from Prime Minister Imran Khan:

• Indoor dining banned
• Outdoor dining allowed till 10pm
• Takeaways and delivery allowed 24 hours
• Markets to close by 8pm
• Markets will be closed twice a week (provinces to decide the days)
• Weddings with a maximum of 400 vaccinated guests allowed
• Ban on processions and gatherings
• 50% attendance at offices
• Public transport to operate at 50% capacity

The new restrictions will be imposed in Islamabad and these cities from August 3 to August 31.

Sindh (after the current partial lockdown ends)
>Karachi
>Hyderabad
Punjab
>Lahore
>Multan
>Faisalabad
>Rawalpindi
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
>Abbottabad
>Peshawar
Gilgit Baltistan
>Gilgit
>Skardu
Azad Jammu and Kashmir
>Muzaffarabad
>Mirpur

Umar said that Pakistan can fight the new wave with targeted smart lockdowns as it did previously. It was necessary to take these decisions because cases are rising and hospitals are reaching their maximum capacity.

He appealed to the people to get vaccinated against the virus as soon as possible.

In the last 24 hours, over 4,800 new cases were reported across the country, while 40 people succumbed to the deadly virus. The infection rate has jumped to 8.61%.

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