Lockdown extended till April 30 but barbershops will remain open

The federal cabinet on Tuesday decided to extend the lockdown imposed to deal with the coronavirus pandemic in the country till April 30.

According to reports, the decision was taken in a meeting of the cabinet chaired by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, keeping in view the increasing number of coronavirus infections and the persisting economic situation in the country.

During the meeting, it was decided that apart from opening the construction industry, other economic and financial sectors will also be made operational.

Tailors, plumbers, electricians, mechanics and barbers will be allowed to run their businesses, while the ban on transport, air travel and reopening of markets, shopping malls, marriage halls and other public places would remain in place.

The final approval to extend the lockdown will be given in the next meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) also scheduled for today.

By the time this report was filed, the number of COVID-19 infections in Pakistan stood at 5,812 with 100 deaths and 1,378 recoveries. Punjab had reported 2,856 cases while Sindh trailed behind at 1,518, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) at 800, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) at 233, Balochistan at 231, Islamabad at 131 and Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) at 43.