After public backlash, Pak govt assures citizens of 'aggressive' measures to combat coronavirus

Following public anguish over the handling of coronavirus situation by Pakistan government, the Prime Minister's Office on Saturday put out a message on social media assuring the people that adequate measures were being taken to combat the pandemic that has claimed over 11,500 lives globally.

"The government is taking aggressive measures to counter coronavirus by screening travellers, setting up isolation and quarantine units for the infected and designating hospitals with facilities to cater the patients," Pakistan Prime Minster's Office (PMO) wrote on Twitter.

This message comes amid Pakistani citizens' displeasure over Imran Khan-led government's handling of the coronavirus outbreak in the country. The people are urging Prime Minister Khan on social media to put the country under lockdown to prevent further spread of the virus.

As the number of coronavirus cases in the country crossed the 600-mark, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah urged people in Karachi to self-isolate voluntarily for three days. The province has been under partial lockdown.

The COVID-19 positive cases in Pakistan were 671 till March 21. Of these, 361 are in Sindh, 137 in Punjab, 104 in Balochistan, 31 in Gilgit-Baltistan, 27 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10 in Islamabad and one in PoK. Three patients have died while five were discharged after treatment.

The new cases have been detected among the pilgrims who had returned from Iran -- one of the worst-affected country-- and have been quarantined in Sukkur, according to a spokesperson for the Sindh health department.