The Sindh government has announced an extension in lockdown till August 15 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus in the province.
Sindh Home Department issued a circular on Thursday making the announcement of the decision taken in order to extend the lockdown in the Sindh province. The decision is made public after having discussions with the National Command and Operation Centre at the National Coordination Council meeting.
The Sindh government made this announcement under the Sindh Epidemic Diseases Act. 2014 (The Sindh Act VIII of 2015) to make an extension in the lockdown till mid of August.
Earlier the provincial government called it a “smart lockdown” which was practiced in several cities of the province till July 15.
During this time frame of “smart lockdown”, the decided business hours and operational days shall be as under:
– Operational business timings excluding pharmacies and small essential daily services shops are open Five days per week (Monday-Friday) from 6 am to 7 pm.
– Restaurants and cafes, bakery, etc open for delivery and take away only —Open Monday- Sunday (closed for customer dine-in)
- i) Take away and pickup (6am to 7pm)
- ii) Home delivery only (7pm to 11pm)
The provincial government has also advised some rules for the citizens while they are out which should be followed:
- No public gatherings/events allowed
- Avoid unnecessary traveling from 7pm to 6am
- Must wear a face mask to any public place
- Maintain a social distance of over 3 feet at all times
- Wash hands for 20 seconds frequently or use good hand sanitizer
- Strictly follow distancing protocols while on any public transport
- Strictly follow SOPs at offices/workplaces advised by WHO
- Regularly practice all SOPs strictly issued by the provincial and federal governments