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Pakistan News & Features Services "Consultations were held with chief secretaries and then health ministers during the meeting of the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) in Islamabad on April 24. The prime minister has given approval for the implementation of the trace and track system from April 25,” the Federal Minister for Planning and Development, Asad Umar, revealed.  ‘The apex body of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) will oversee the system but the provincial governments, information technology institutions, civil and military organizations will also be involved in the process,” he added.  "This is a complete national response formed by the government though the provincial governments will be responsible mainly for the implementation of the system,” the minister elaborated.

Pakistan News & Features Services Pakistan, battling it out against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, has extended the lockdown until May 9. Earlier it was scheduled to end on April 30. The announcement in this regard was made by the Federal Minister for Planning and Development, Asad Umar, on April 24.  The decision to extend the countrywide lockdown till May 9 was taken during a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) meeting held at the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) in Islamabad earlier in the day.  The federal minister expressed the hope that if people practiced the prescribed safety precautions during the holy month of Ramadan, beginning on April 25, then it could allow business and other activities to inch towards normalcy.  "However, God forbid, if we demonstrate irresponsibility, then we may have to impose more restrictions after Eid," he warned.  He was of the opinion that Pakistanis generally had made a lot of changes to the...

By Masood Sattar Khan (Pakistan News & Features Services) Wuhan, the epicenter of COVID-19 in China’s Hubei province has achieved a landmark victory as no new confirmed infections or suspected cases for last 20 days as of April 23 were reported.  Also all severe coronavirus patients in Wuhan have fully recovered. Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission, informed that as the last COVID-19 patient with severe symptoms was cured on April 24 and all cases in severe and critical condition in Wuhan had been cleared. “The number of current confirmed cases in Hubei province, the region hardest hit by the epidemic in China, dropped under 50 for the first time on April 23. No new confirmed infections or suspected cases have been reported in the province for 20 consecutive days,” the Chinese official declared.  The Chinese mainland reported six confirmed cases as of April 23, the lowest daily increase since the epidemic began, according to the National Health Commiss...

By Masood Sattar Khan  (Pakistan News & Features Services) The Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, attended the preparation and response plan of the new crown epidemic on April 24. According to the details shared by the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad, Ambassador Yao Jing was invited to attend the Pakistan New Crown Outbreak Preparation and Response Plan (PPRP) on video conference. The meeting, organized by the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was also attended by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Minister of Economic Affairs, Khasro Bakhtiar, Prime Minister’s Health Adviser Dr Zafar Mirza, Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority, General Muhammad Afzal, WHO Director-General, Tan Desai besides the representatives of World Bank, United Nations, UNICEF, UNHCR, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank and envoys from more than 20 countries.  Besides China, envoys from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, the European Unio...

By Mukhtar Alam (Pakistan News & Features Services) Following the demands and advices from the medical practitioners in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, the Sindh Government, late on April 23 night, declared that it will continue observing the standard operating procedures (SOP) meant for mosques as usual to avert the congregational prayers, including those of Fridays and Ramadan nights.   In a video message, the Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah, declared that a stringent ‘lockdown’ as ordered earlier will be ensured on Friday from 12 noon to 3 pm, so that people did not participate in Friday prayers at mosques and they stayed at homes.  Only the staff of mosques will be in a position to offer the Friday prayers, he added and said that worshippers, other than the mosque staff, will not be allowed to take part in taraweeh prayers during the Ramadan.  He mentioned that, in this regard, he had also spoken to the President of Pakistan, Dr Arif Alvi, who in con...

Pakistan News & Features Services The World Book and Copyright Day, more commonly known as the World Book Day, having become one of the most significant dates in the scholastic circles, witnessed muted celebrations on April 23, 2020, due to the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown.  The World Book Day was being celebrated with growing enthusiasm in Pakistan during the last few years as the various stakeholders took the responsibility of spreading awareness about reading, publishing and copyright.  Larger number of universities and other educational institutions, besides governmental and non-governmental organizations as well as commercial entities had made a point to hold World Book Day awareness events like walks and seminars on April 23 in the recent past but this could not be possible due to the pandemic of coronavirus (COVID-19).  The UNESCO, alongwith the international organizations representing the three major sectors of the book industry, publishers, booksellers and libra...

Pakistan News & Features Services  The German government has moved to help further their workers and businesses affected by the pandemic by offering more wage support and tax relief. Germany's coalition parties, on April 23, have agreed to further measures worth 10 billion euros ($10.81bn) in order to shield workers and companies from the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The document agreed by senior members of Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling coalition has also agreed to temporarily lower the tax burden for the catering industry through a reduced VAT rate of 7 percent for food and to give some tax relief for small companies.  The package envisages increased financial support of the federal government worth 500 million euros ($540.88bn) for schools and pupils to boost e-learning and digitalization.  The aid package includes more government wage support for people in short-time work schemes, an arrangement that subsidises wages so that firms can cut wor...