ISLAMABAD: Homeless people residing in homeless shelters, also known as panah gahs, who may be at risk of contracting coronavirus, are being educated about the virus.

The government has issued health advisory for safety of the residents and beneficiaries of shelter homes set up across the country.

The health advisory containing precautionary measures has been forwarded to volunteers and service providers of Panah Gahs to ensure safety of its dwellers and those who are visiting its food centres, Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Shelter Homes Naseemur Rehman said during his visit to the G-9 facility.

Talking to this news agency, Mr Rehman said the administrations of the shelter homes had also been provided audio clips containing information about safety measures against the virus so that they could forward it to every dweller.

Health advisory has been forwarded to volunteers, service providers of Panah Gah

The beneficiaries have been advised to avoid physical contact and keep at least a distance of three feet from each other, wash hands properly with soap and abstain from touching doors and their knobs unnecessarily, he said.

He said a team of 11 people, comprising locals and volunteers, had been formed to handle day-to-day affairs of each shelter home.

The initiative is also aimed at getting input from its dwellers to ensure improved services there, he added.

Mr Rehman said the teams were paying regular visits to get first-hand information about issues being faced by people at Panah Gahs.

Health awareness sessions are also being conducted to sensitise the dwellers about personal hygiene, he added.

To a question, he said 50 shelter homes had been set up across the country to provide accommodation and food to homeless and needy people.

As many as 40 Panah Gahs are fully functional in six major cities of the country while 10 are near completion and will soon start facilitating the needy people.

The shelter homes are operating in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Peshawar, Faisalabad and Sialkot, he added.

Mr Rehman said the shelter homes were serving more than 3,200 people in the federal capital daily by providing breakfast to 669 people, lunch to 1,036 and dinner to 1,501 people.

Around 430 people are staying at these points, he added.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2020