Wearing mask in weekly bazaars, shrines declared must

ISLAMABAD: People will never be allowed to enter weekly bazaars of Islamabad without mask. The district administration has advised residents to continue following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) properly to avoid coronavirus if they want to enter weekly bazaars for shopping otherwise not. It was observed that dozens of young people (boys and girls) stood outside weekly bazaars, Metro Stations, shrines and public parks here in federal capital and providing face mask and hand sanitizers free of cost to visitors.

“I suggest the masses keep following SOPs and do not go out unnecessarily. We are running our surveillance activities 24/7 and expect people to cooperate with our teams,” District Health Officer (DHO), Islamabad Dr Zaeem Zia told ‘The News’ here on Monday.

He said that public should avoid big gatherings. “Our surveillance teams are continuously visiting weekly bazaars where we could observe an unprecedented rush. Without face mask people would be an easy target of coronavirus,” he warned. He said the main focus in the federal capital remained contact tracing.

Dr Zaeem also said, “Our surveillance teams are also visiting in public parks to educate visitors to use face mask. We could win this war against coronavirus by adopting proper SOPs,” he advised.

The Deputy Commissioner (DC) Islamabad, Hamza Shafqaat, said, “Several people come to weekly bazaars for shopping. I have directed to concerned staff of weekly bazaars to educate people to wear face mask if they want to enter bazaars,” he said. “We will never compromise on SOPs at any cost,” he warned.

Meanwhile, followers and faithful could not enter shrines of Bari Imam and Golra Sharif without face mask. The concerned staff of shrines was stopping without mask people on entry gates. Violators are protesting against staff members but in vain.