QUETTA: Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani has expressed fear about an increase in Covid-19 patients in the province due to the changing weather conditions.

He directed the Balochistan Command and Operations Centre (BCOC) on Covid-19 to monitor the spread of coronavirus, prevent its spread in the coming days and prepare recommendations for smart lockdown.

Mr Alyani was presiding over a meeting on Tuesday which reviewed the current status of coronavirus in the province. Balochistan Health Secretary Mir Dostain Khan Jamaldini and other officials briefed the meeting on the prevalence of the virus in the province.

Public health and general health experts, who attended the meeting, expressed concern over the spread of coronavirus as a result of climate change as revealed by the report of a study conducted to assess the prevalence of the virus in the province.

Based on the decision to increase the coronavirus testing capacity to 2,000 per day, the meeting reviewed the coronavirus testing capacity, performance of testing laboratories and Covid-19 victims tracking mechanism.

The chief minister directed the home department to evolve a strategy of smart lockdown as per the recommendations of BCOC and the health department while ensuring implementation of standard operating procedures in private and public educational institutions.

Published in Dawn, September 23rd, 2020