Punjab govt may close wedding halls, ban sports activities for two weeks Says Firdous Ashiq Awan

By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 05 Jan 2023

Special Assistant to Punjab Chief Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan says the Punjab govt is considering a limit on activities as people’s lives are more important than events.
Awan says the government will limit activities that will not affect the economy.
She said she was diagnosed with coronavirus so she understands the problems associated with it.

Special Assistant to Punjab Chief Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan said on Monday that the Punjab government is considering placing a complete ban on wedding halls and sports activities in the province for two weeks.

“A proposal for a complete ban on wedding halls and sports for two weeks is under consideration,” Awan said. She added that they were considering such a decision as people’s lives are more important than such events.

The special assistant said that the government will limit activities that will not affect the economy. She added that she was diagnosed with coronavirus so she understands the problems associated with it.

The de facto information minister of Punjab said that the coronavirus was not a problem for one province, but all provinces. She added that no government can deal with the problem alone.

Punjab ramping up restrictions as coronavirus cases spike

Earlier this month, the Punjab government decided to reimpose several restrictions in different districts of the province after coronavirus cases started to going up again in Punjab.

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar had tweeted an update on the new restrictions, saying that COVID-19 cases, especially the UK variant, were spreading across the province.

"According to the advice of health experts, starting from Saturday night, we have decided to implement strict coronavirus SOPs in districts with over 5% positivity rate for the next 15 days," he had said.

His tweet came as the Punjab health department issued a notification detailing the restrictions and situation across the province.

"The positivity rate in some cities is constantly rising and the third wave is looming, which poses a serious and imminent threat to public health," the notification read.

The restrictions were placed under the Punjab Infectious Diseases (Prevention and Control) Act 2020.

Here's what is allowed and what isn't:

All commercial activities, establishments, and markets will close by 6 pm on weekdays and completely closed on weekends.
This excludes medical services, general stores, bakeries, milk and meat shops, tire puncture shops, fruit and vegetable shops, tandoors, petrol pumps, oil depots, LPG outlets and filing plants, agriculture machinery workshops and spare parts shops, printing press, call centers (with 50% staff and no public dealing).
Takeaway and home delivery from restaurants will remain open.
Wedding halls are to stay closed in Lahore, Rawalpindi. Sargodha, Faisalabad, Multan, Gujranwala, and Gujrat from March 15.
Only outdoor weddings will be allowed with a maximum of 300 guests.
There is a complete ban on indoor and outdoor dining in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Multan, Gujranwala, and Gujrat and only takeaway/ home delivery will be allowed in these cities.
Parks will close at 6 pm.
Offices are to follow a 50% work from home policy.
Cinemas and shrines will stay closed.
Large gatherings indoors have been banned. Outdoor gatherings (other than weddings) are allowed with a maximum of 50 people in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Multan, Gujranwala, and Gujrat and 300 persons in the rest of the province for a maximum of two hours.
Sports and all cultural activities will remain banned.
Industrial activities and establishments are exempt from these restrictions.