Inbound flights reduced as coronavirus cases surge

ISLAMABAD: The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Thursday recommended that airlines sharply cut the number of inbound flights between May 5 and 20 out of concern that travellers from overseas could deteriorate the coronavirus situation.

Later, the CAA notified the extension in travel restrictions on Category C countries amid the third wave of coronavirus pandemic on Thursday.

The aviation authority extended the travel restrictions of 23 countries placed in Category C till May 4 in view of the decisions taken by the NCOC.

Brazil, India, Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa and others are among 23 countries included in the Category C. Those coming from countries in the C travel category will have to take prior permission from the NCOC. The restrictions will also be imposed on the Pakistani passport holders, NICOP and POC holders.

The travellers from Category A will not have to present their Covid reports for boarding or landing in Pakistan. However, those coming from countries in the B travel category will have to make sure a negative Covid PCR report at a maximum of 90 hours prior to boarding.

The rest of Covid SOPs will remain the same and their implementation will be mandatory, CAA said. The new travel restrictions will remain in effect until May 4.

In a meeting chaired by Minister for Development and Planning Asad Umar, the forum decided to review the measure on May 18. Detailed instructions regarding the reduction in air travel would be provided by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), a press statement announced.

The recommendation came at a time when the government is struggling to arrest a deadly third peak of the pandemic and is considering imposing stricter lockdowns to lower the death rate — the number of infections resulting in fatalities — that hit the highest point since the start of the pandemic in February last year to reach 2.2 per cent.

Officials and experts have said that healthcare facilities are at risk of being overwhelmed. The country has very limited health resources, with ventilators and oxygen in short supply. More than 70 per cent of ventilators and oxygenated beds were occupied in hospitals in many major cities until earlier this week.

During Thursday’s meeting, the NCOC also reviewed the production and supply of oxygen, granting permission to import 6,000 metric tonnes of oxygen and 5,000 oxygen cylinders to shore up healthcare facilities across the country.

Besides this, the body also allowed the import of 20 cryogenic tanks and decided to shut down the iron scrap industry of Misri Shah in Lahore so oxygen could be diverted to the healthcare sector instead.

Separately, Asad announced that starting from May 3, the vaccination against Covid-19 will be open to people aged 40 and above.

While expressing satisfaction at the pace of registration for vaccination, the minister in-charge of coronavirus operations said on Twitter that Thursday marked the second successive day with more than 100,000 vaccinations in the country.

The government on Tuesday opened the registration for Covid-19 vaccination for the 40-49 age group and also allowed walk-in vaccination of all registered citizens aged 50 and above.

Pakistan started the general vaccination drive in March after the arrival of China-gifted vaccine doses, with the frontline health workers and elderly people given priority for inoculation.

Other than vaccine doses gifted by China, the government has purchased 3 million vaccine doses from several companies, whereas orders for another 30 million doses have already been placed to speed up the vaccination process in the country.

The NCOC also announced a “Stay Home, Stay Safe” strategy from May 8 to May 16, aimed at controlling the movement of people, including during the Eid holidays.

Eid-ul-Fitr holidays would be observed from May 10 to 15, the statement said. “Announcement of Eid Holidays […] clearly stating intention of reducing national mobility,” it added.

The forum has also imposed a ban on the crescent night (chand raat) stalls; tourism and routes leading to tourist destinations; inter-provincial, inter-city and intra-city public transport. Private vehicles will operate with 50 per cent capacity.

It also announced to issue comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) for Youm-e-Ali (AS), Itekaf, Shab-e-Qadar, Jumatul Wida, and Eid prayers by May 1.

The government has been making all-out efforts to ensure the standard operating procedures to be followed by the public.

Besides restrictions already in place, the authorities have recently taken fresh measures including closing schools in cities with over 5 per cent coronavirus positivity rate, banning indoor and outdoor dining, and reducing market opening and office hours.

According to the officials, the number of critical cases in the country has been on the rise recently and the healthcare system has remained under immense pressure, with hospitals facing a shortage of beds and medical oxygen.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday that the government is considering importing medical oxygen from China and Iran given a shortage due to a growing number of coronavirus cases.