AJK PM rescinds decision to ease lockdown as coronavirus cases shoot up

MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider has rescinded his prior decision to ease the lockdown, according to a notification issued Sunday by the region's home department, as four new cases of the novel coronavirus were reported.

According to the notification, Haider suspended all exemptions granted earlier under a softening of restrictions in the wake of an "escalating spread of coronavirus in the region and dangerous levels of increase in the number of patients".

It was notified that the new policy of a complete lockdown was set to come into effect at midnight, May 18, and would remain in effect for the next two weeks. Shops for basic necessities and medical stores were to remain open at preset times, Haider said.

The AJK premier also appealed to the people to cooperate, saying the directives were merely safety and precautionary measures taken to safeguard everyone from the pandemic. Transport was to remain suspended as well and no one should step out of their home unnecessarily, he added.

"The current situation does not warrant that people go out for Eid-ul-Fitr shopping. Celebrate Eid simply," Haider stressed.

Earlier today, four new cases were reported in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, while 26 fresh ones were detected in Islamabad, taking the nationwide toll to more than 41,000.

Overall, close to 16,400 cases have been recorded in Sindh, almost 14,600 in Punjab, upwards of 6,000 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, more than 2,500 in Balochistan, 540 in Gilgit-Baltistan, nearly 950 in Islamabad, and over 110 in AJK.