LAHORE: Amid the resurge of coronavirus cases across the country, the Punjab government has decided to reduce business hours in the province.
The decision was made after frequent violations of the government-defined SOPs by businesses. the authorities decide that shops across the province will close at 6 pm.
Besides, the provincial government has also finalized a string of measures, including allowing half of its employees to work from home, to limit the spared of COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the president of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Mian Tariq Misbah has opposed the decision saying there will be overcrowding of people at markets if business hours are reduced. He assured that traders will follow SOPs strictly.
Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Rawalpindi are the most affected cities in the province from the second wave of the pandemic.
The second wave of coronavirus has started in Pakistan and SOPs will have to be strictly followed to deal with it. According to the NCOC, the coronavirus epidemic is spreading rapidly in 15 cities across the country.
Eighty percent of coronavirus cases in Pakistan were reported from eleven major cities. Provincial governments have been directed to make SOPs and masks mandatory in markets, shopping malls, public transport and restaurants.
The coronavirus has claimed 34 more lives in Pakistan, bringing the total death toll to 7,696. According to statistics released by the National Command and Operations Center, 2,756 more cases of coronavirus have been reported in the last 24 hours and the total number of affected people has reached 376,929.
The number of people recovering from coronavirus in Pakistan is 330,885 and 38,348 are undergoing treatment. The condition of 1,677 patients infected with coronavirus is critical.
The number of coronavirus cases in Islamabad is 27,018, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 44,599, Sindh 1,63,329, Punjab 1,14,508, Balochistan 16,810, Azad Kashmir 6,123 and Gilgit-Baltistan 4,542.
