Pakistan quarantines hundreds of pilgrims from Iran, as it steps up efforts to contain coronavirus
- The surge in coronavirus cases in Iran has resulted in Pakistan shutting its border, suspending flights and closing schools
- Last year as many as 120,000 Pakistani pilgrims travelled to Iran, which is a popular destination for Shia Muslims
Hundreds of Pakistanis typically move through the border with Iran in Chaman every day, including businessmen and pilgrims.
Last year, as many as 120,000 Pakistani pilgrims travelled to Iran. Cities such as Mashhad and Qom are considered holy for Pakistan’s Shiite minority Muslims, with the shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad a favoured destination for these pilgrims.
Pakistan has set up a 100-bed tent hospital at Taftan, a town at the Pakistan-Iran border in Baluchistan province, to provide screening facilities for Pakistani pilgrims returning from Iran.
In another move, Pakistan has quarantined 960 people in Sindh who had recently travelled home after pilgrimages, to prevent the spread of the disease.
“Hundreds of families have been quarantined in their homes in various parts of Sindh who have just returned after pilgrimage in Iran. They did not exhibit symptoms of Covid-19. But the step was taken as a preventive measure,” said Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, a provincial minister, on Wednesday.
Pakistan has also suspended flights to and from Iran. Pakistan International Airlines operates two direct flights per week between Pakistan and Iran connecting the Pakistani cities of Lahore and Quetta with Iranian city of Mahshhad, while three Iranian airlines also operate flights. Road and rail movement between the two neighbouring countries was suspended earlier last week.
Last month, the government decided not to evacuate more than 1,000 Pakistani students from Hubei province, ignoring demands from their irate parents and explaining that Pakistan wanted to show solidarity with its staunch ally, China.
An estimated 60,000 Chinese nationals work in Pakistan, with 400 companies involved in projects there. About 500,000 Pakistani students visit China every year, with 22,000 of them studying on scholarships.
Health authorities continue to warn hospitals and clinics across the country to remain alert, while airports are using thermal scanners to screen incoming passengers.
Pakistan shuts schools, suspends Iran flights to curb virus spread
Surgical masks have disappeared from markets across Pakistan, and are being sold on the black market at inflated prices. A box of masks which before cost US$1 is now selling for US$12.
The deputy commissioner of Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital, warned shopkeepers and vendors against hoarding and making profits from face masks, and to ensure their availability.
While many supermarkets across Pakistan appear to have adequate stocks of groceries and other everyday items, residents of big cities have started restricting their movements, with fewer people seen out shopping or in parks.
“It’s time to take precautions since the cure to Covid-19 is not known yet. We are better to sit back at home making less numbers of visit to markets and populated areas. I have already stopped my kids from going to school. We need to wait until the threat of coronavirus is over,” said Dr Sobia Ali, a resident of Islamabad.
