ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar on Thursday said that from August 1, unvaccinated teachers will not be allowed to perform their duties in schools as government cannot endanger lives of children.
Addressing a press conference along with Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr. Faisal Sultan here, Asad Umar said that a lot of people are still not taking the virus seriously and urged people to get vaccinated.
Asad Umar, who also heads NCOC, said that Sindh government is taking every possible step to curb the spread of virus but government cannot shut down entire country to fight the pandemic. We don’t want to affect livelihood of anyone and every effort will be made to keep the economy open, he added.
NCOC head further said that from August 1, only vaccinated people will be allowed to travel by air in the country and from August 31, unvaccinated staff will not be allowed in transport sector.
NCOC chief said that vaccination is the only solution to get rid of the pandemic. “Vaccination drive is ongoing in all parts of Pakistan. We have set a new record of maximum vaccination by administering over 8.5 Lac vaccine shots in a day, yesterday,” Umar said.
Punjab made maximum vaccination record yesterday with inoculating around five Lac people, which is maximum record in a day for the province, Asad Umar said.
“Sindh administered 1.69 Lac vaccines on Wednesday, which is also the maximum record for the province,” he said. All provinces have set new records of maximum vaccination yesterday, the federal minister said.
“We are eyeing to attain the target of one million vaccination in the country in a day,” he said.
The National Command and Operation Centre chief also said that 31st August will be the last date for workers of the hotels and restaurants, employees of the train service, public transport, government offices and those working at shops and markets to get vaccinated. “After this deadline the un-vaccinated people will not be allowed to work,” he announced.
SAPM on Health Dr Faisal Sultan, who was also present during the session, said that critical care cases, which were less than 2,000 in June, have surged past 3,000.
He said that the pressure on health facilities across the country has increased considerably during the last few days as the infection rate has spiked.
