Seven suspected coronavirus cases reported in K-P

Peshawar district administration closes wedding halls

PESHAWAR: At least seven new suspected cases of Coronavirus have been reported in the province including two people who had recently returned from China and one person from Iran.

Sources at the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Health Department informed that four new suspected cases have been reported from Mardan Medical Complex (MMC). Two of the suspected patients are aged 25 and 28 years while on is above 50 years of age who recently returned from China and has been suffering from fever and throat infections. The fourth suspect, 35-year-old from Rashkai area of Mardan district has no travel history, the sources added.

The health department sources further said that one suspected case each from DI Khan and Kohat districts and Peshawar Services hospital have been reported.

The sources said that samples of all the suspected cases have been shared with the National Institute of Health (NIH) and once they receive test results, the relevant authorities will make an announcement in this regard.

K-P Health Department has so far cleared 27 suspected coronavirus patients out of the total 36.

The provincial government has screened at least 1, 016 people at the Bacha Khan International Airport while 6, 989 people at the Torkham border.

Wedding halls closed

In the wake of the novel coronavirus, the Peshawar district administration on Saturday closed at least 40 wedding halls in the provincial capital which resulted into suspension of over 18 wedding ceremonies.

Peshawar district administration has issued directives to all marriage halls in the city and asked them to cancel all wedding events booked for the current month.

Residents of the provincial capital have expressed anger over the sudden closure of the wedding halls. Waqar Khan, a resident of Peshawar told The Express Tribune that they have invited 500 people to their wedding and had made all arrangements which have been cancelled.

Speaking to the Express Tribune City Wedding Hall Association President Khan Gul said all restaurants are doing business across the provincial capital while the government has only closed wedding halls which was beyond his understanding. He said the government should revisit its decision.

Meanwhile, at least 150 hostels for both girls and boys have also been shut down and students told to go to their home on the orders issued by the provincial government.

Schools

Despite clear orders by the federal and provincial governments, majority of the private schools in the province have not been closed yet while some schools have even arranged parents’ day events. Several schools on Kohat Road in Peshawar, some schools in Mardan, Swabi and some others were not closed on Saturday. 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 15^th, 2020.