We’re additionally helping the civil administration in organising quarantine camps, says Main Basic Babur Iftikhar. SCREENGRAB
ISLAMABAD: The armed forces are helping the civil administration in combatting the coronavirus and have taken needed motion to implement the choices of the Nationwide Safety Committee (NSC) final week, Main Basic Babar Iftikhar, the director normal of the Inter-Providers Public Relations (ISPR) mentioned on Thursday.
Talking at a joint press convention with Particular Assistant to Prime Minister on Info Firdous Ashiq Awan and State Minister for Well being Dr Zafar Mirza, he mentioned that scientists underneath the supervision of the military have been busy researching and manufacturing the safety tools.
“Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa has instructed all the formations of the Pakistan Army to reach out to the civil administration at district and tehsil levels in their respective domains to handle the coronavirus crisis,” he advised the presser.
“The armed forces are utilising all resources to cooperate with the local administration to counter the pandemic,” he mentioned. “The armed forces are in action from the day one for implementing the decisions made by the National Security Committee and directives issued by Prime Minister Imran Khan.”
Maj-Gen Iftikhar revealed that scientists underneath the supervision of the Pakistan military have been busy researching and manufacturing private safety tools, resembling facemasks and hand sanitisers.
As well as, the chief army spokesman continued, a “medical plan of action” had been compiled underneath the supervision of the surgeon normal of the Pakistan military to help the efforts to combat towards the illness.
“Also, all medical facilities of the armed forces have been geared up, and measures are being taken to make them available for extreme emergency situation,” he mentioned, including that solely elective surgical procedures have been being carried out at these establishment in order that these could possibly be used throughout emergencies.
The armed forces have been additionally helping the civil administrations with the safety and administration of varied quarantine camps arrange throughout the nation, the ISPR director normal advised reporters.
On the presser, Maj-Gen Iftikhar and Dr Mirza in addition to Dr Firdous pressured the necessity for quashing pretend information in regards to the coronavirus. “Timely and accurate flow of information is the key to avoid panic, rumours and fake news,” Iftikhar mentioned.
“Mapping inhabitants demographics and protecting them knowledgeable is the important thing to make sure calm, he mentioned, including that folks in all of the 4 teams – particular person, household, group and society – should play their half, each individually and collectively, to face the coronavirus problem.
Whereas sharing statistics, he mentioned that 67% inhabitants of the nation lived within the villages and 81% used mobiles. “Reaching the targeted audience through appropriate mediums of communication is crucial to controlling the spread of coronavirus,” the army spokesperson pressured.
“Unified sources of information are necessary to deal with any emergency situation… and only through effective means of communication the rumours can be dispelled.”
Social distancing
Talking on the event, Dr Mirza suggested towards spreading unverified info out there on social media about COVID-19. “I consider it a communicable disease. The way a disease is spread, misinformation is spread; don’t spread unverified information on social media,” he mentioned.
He emphasised that coronavirus might nonetheless be managed in Pakistan by way of social distancing. He urged individuals to go to hospitals alone in the event that they have been sick. “There is no need to be obsessive about the number of coronavirus cases,” he mentioned.
Dr Mirza advised reporters that one of many outcomes of President Arif Alvi’s latest go to to China was the far-reaching discussions between Pakistani and Chinese language consultants in well being sector.
Specialists within the communicable illnesses, epidemiology and clinicians in China will quickly maintain video conferencing with Pakistani consultants within the coming days,” he mentioned. “First video conference is expected in a day or two [in which] provincial experts will also take part.”
Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan mentioned {that a} committee had been constituted underneath the chairmanship of Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance Dr Hafeez Shaikh to plot a plan to keep away from financial slowdown due to the coronavirus within the nation.
The committee, she added, will work on the Nationwide Financial Coverage and current the plan to the prime minister quickly for remaining approval, including that the federal government was engaged on a monetary stimulus package deal to assist labourers and each day wage earners to mitigate the influence of coronavirus.
She warned towards hoarding of meals and different merchandise, saying that strict motion can be taken towards all these concerned in creating synthetic disaster. She mentioned that there was no scarcity of meals or objects of important use in Pakistan.
“PM Imran Khan is fully aware of the current situation and monitoring the developments across the country,” Firdous mentioned, including that safety of individuals’s life, belongings and well being was the firstly precedence of the federal government.
“Prime Minister Imran considers it the most important responsibility for himself,” she mentioned. “The aim of the PM’s go to to the quarantine camps on March 18 was to present a transparent message to the plenty that he was personally supervising the preparations made to counter the illness.
Firdous mentioned the federal and provincial governments and all establishments have been working in full concord to discharge their duties.
