FAISALABAD: The health officials have requested the district administration for imposition of a ‘micro smart lockdown’ following detection of Covid-19 cases among 10 people, including four children, of Madina Town.

The Covid-19 has been detected among Hurain, 4, Zaman, 6, and Mariya, 30, Kashif, 40, Eman, 5, Hira Zia, 35, Umat Rasool,74, Adiyan, 8, Rasal, 12 and Shumaila, 38. All patients reportedly belong to two families of Y Block, Madina Town.

Following detection of the patients, the district focal person for Covid-19 approached the district administration with a request to ask the SHOs to ensure implementation of the SOPs and micro smart lockdown in the area.

All the deputy district officers health Faisalabad have been asked to mark the houses as quarantine of their respective tehsils.

MULTAN: A private school was closed after two students were found to have been suffering from Covid-19.

Five students among 16 test positive for Covid

A letter from the chief executive officer (CEO), District Education Authority (DEA), Multan, was dispatched to the Lahore Grammar School principal according to which ‘as per advice Muhammad Khalid Aslam, Deputy District Education Officer (EE-M), Multan city, paid a visit to Lahore Grammar School, Officers’ Colony Branch, on Sept 28.

Two students namely Ms Shahwez, a O level student, and Ms Maryam, an A level student, were detected as Covid-19 positive patients’.

It stated that as per the instruction of the provincial school education department, the schools where cases of Covid-19 appear, shall be closed, so as to avoid spread of coronavirus among other students and staff.

“You are directed to immediately close the school till further orders. In case of non-compliance, a strict action will be taken under the Punjab Private Educational Institution (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance 1984 and its amendments till date,” the letter concluded.

The parents, however, complained that initially the school administration sent the message to them that the school would remain open and the reports of the detection of virus in the students are false; however on Wednesday morning, they received a message that the school would remain closed onward.

The school also had announced opening of its junior campus on Sept 30 which was opened as per its schedule on Wednesday; however, many of the parents avoided to send their children to school.

According to an official handout, the DEA CEO also visited the school and expressed his concern over the situation while issuing directions to the school principal to arrange the tests of the staff as well as the students randomly. It stated that both the students had been quarantined in their houses while the school administration had been directed to disinfect the school.

DEA CEO Riaz Baloch said initially the school had been closed for eight days while the testing of staff had also been started.

“We are observing the situation minutely and any further decision to open the school will be taken carefully,” he added.

TOBA TEK SINGH: A Kamalia city’s government girls high school teacher and three girl students have been detected as Covid-19 positive.

During a random testing of five per cent of the teachers and students of different government schools by the health department of the Kamalia tehsil, Faisalabad Allied Hospital’s laboratory had detected a teacher and two students of the Government Girls Laboratory High School, Delhi Chowk, Kamalia, and a student of the Government Girls High School of Katchi Basti, Kamalia, as coronavirus patients.

Officials said the health department had asked all of them to live in self- quarantine at their houses for two weeks.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2020