K-P team to improvise smart lockdown strategy

K-P CM Mahmood Khan says govt trying to contain deadly outbreak

PESHAWAR: With the provincial government implementing a ‘smart lockdown’ in 240 novel coronavirus (Covid-19) hotspots across the province, it formed a committee on Monday to devise a strategy to make the lockdown even more effective.

This was decided during a high-level meeting to review the smart lockdown situation across the province. The meeting was chaired by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Mahmood Khan.

Matters related to the smart lockdown strategy and on managing specific hotspot areas was discussed.

With participants of the meeting stressing the need to make the lockdown more effective, especially in the hotspots of the provincial capital, it was decided to form a team - headed by K-P Health Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra.

The team will also include the Peshawar commissioner, deputy commissioner, capital city police officer (CCPO) and other relevant officials to devise a workable strategy in consultation with elected representatives of these areas.

This strategy will be presented to the Provincial Task Force on Covid-19 when it meets next in a few days.

Earlier, participants of the meeting were given a detailed briefing about the implementation of the smart lockdown. They were that the lockdown had been enforced in 240 hotspots across the province and it covered more than 2,000 active Covid-19 cases.

In Peshawar, the smart lockdown has been enforced in 11 specific localities with around 290 positive cases.

CM Mahmood said that they were trying to contain the outbreak. He added that the government is taking measures after minutely analyzing the overall situation and directed the administration and police of all districts to take the respective elected representatives on board on the smart lockdowns.

Separately, in his daily press briefing, Adviser to K-P Chief Minister on information Ajmal Wazir said that so far some 6,536 Covid-19 positive patients had recovered in 241 hospitals across the province.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23^rd, 2020.