Commissioner Karachi Iftikhar Shallwani announced on Thursday that smart and micro lockdowns will be imposed in all districts of the city as cases of the novel coronavirus surge.
The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by Shallwani which was attended by deputy commissioners and the district health officers. Secretary health Kazim Jatoi was also part of the meeting.
Smart lockdowns will be imposed in four districts of the city whereas micro lockdowns will be imposed in two districts of Karachi.
"Micro lockdowns will be imposed in districts Malir and Korangi," said Shallwani. "All deputy commissioners should consult their respective health officers [on the lockdowns]. The notification announcing the lockdown will be released by today or tomorrow," he added.
In areas where the smart lockdowns will be imposed, no more than four persons will be allowed to gather at one place and wearing masks will be made compulsory. Only one person will be allowed to leave his/her house and will have to explain the reason for venturing out to law enforcement personnel.
People will not be allowed to hold events or social gatherings in areas where the smart lockdowns will be imposed.
A total of 2,738 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the past 24 hours, bringing the tally to 368,665 . With 36 new deaths, the country's coronavirus death toll reached 7,561. So far, a total of 327,542 people have recovered from the virus while the active number of cases stands at 33,562.
With 42,909 tests conducted across Pakistan, the positivity rate has reached 6.3%.
