Afghan nationals crossing the Torkham border entry point into Pakistan carry fake Covid-19 certificates without inviting much attention.
Around 15,000 people cross the border on a daily basis as per the official estimates.
Talking to The Express Tribune, an Afghan national Hidayat said that on the Afghan side of the border people openly sell Covid-19 certificates for just Rs400 and since no one can enter without these documents, it has become a profitable business for some people.
“I myself bought a certificate which is a ‘proof’ that I am Covid free. I paid Rs400 in Pakistani currency for it. This practice is going on for the past couple of months. There is no mechanism on the Pakistani side to verify certificates or documents,” he said, adding that certificates are printed on the site within five minutes by local dealers instead of laboratories and before being stamped for confirmation.
District Health Officer (DHO) Khyber Dr Tariq Hayat said that they had two teams deployed at Torkham border.
“One is our own team comprising a doctor and three paramedics whereas another comprises three to four people from the federal government,” he said.
“If a man entering from Afghanistan has symptoms then we test him as per the SOPs issued by the federal government. We test an average 40 people per day,” he informed, adding that the Afghan government issues its own certificates but Pakistan health department has its own mechanism in place.
“We have a thermal scanner which is effective in identifying people with high temperatures,” he added. “Those people are tested for coronavirus on site and asked to return back if they have tested positive.”
A local resident Gulab Shinwari said that there was just a single terminal for travellers on Pakistan’s side and it was simply impossible to practise social distancing.
“It is overcrowded. You know all patients don’t have high fever after contracting Covid-19 so the presence of thermal scanner is of very little use. Thousands of people use this terminal which is manned by a limited staff so it is not possible to scan all people each day. There should be at least four terminals with sufficient staff to address this issue,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 22nd, 2021.
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