LANDI KOTAL: Cross border movement at Torkham came to a complete halt on Monday as the crossing was closed for two weeks as part of efforts to control spread of conoravirus from the neighbouring countries.

The federal government had announced on March 13 to shut down its western borders with Iran and Afghanistan.

Hundreds of thousands of Afghans reached the Torkham border on Saturday to get back to their country in anticipation of its closure.

Immigration and local police officials said an unprecedented number of Afghan and Pakistani nationals crossed the border on Saturday, the last day before its closure.

They said over 21,000 people travelled on both sides of the border with the crossing remaining open till midnight to facilitate maximum number of Afghans to return to their country.

Transporters, however, argued that some of the loaded trucks could not complete custom clearing process due to excessive rush on the last day.

They appealed to the Pakistani authorities to let them cross over to Afghanistan as the trucks contained perishable items.

Meanwhile, the National Database and Registration Authority has also closed down both its offices in Landi Kotal and Jamrud amid virus threat.

The district administration has also urged local elders, clerics and civil society to avoid public gatherings and spread awareness among general public about the dangers of coronavirus.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2020