Punjab chief secretary Jawad Rafique Malik has decided to grant deputy commissioners the authority to impose a two-week targeted lockdown in hotspots in seven cities across the province, according to a press release issued by Nabeela Ghazanfar, director of public relations at the chief secretary's office.

"The National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) identified 20 cities across Pakistan with potential Covid-19 hotspots. Seven of these [cities] are located in Punjab. The chief secretary has decided to grant deputy commissioners [in these districts] the authority to impose lockdowns in hotspots across these cities," the press release reads.

The seven cities are as follows:

• Lahore
• Rawalpindi
• Faisalabad
• Multan
• Gujranwala
• Sialkot
• Gujarat

Lahore's hotspot areas will go under lockdown from tonight while the Covid-19 hotspots in the other cities will be placed under lockdown from midnight tomorrow, it added.