Amid the rise in coronavirus cases due to the third wave of COVID-19, the demand for face masks has increased in various cities of Punjab.

As per media reports, due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, the National Command and Control Center (NCOC) has ordered strict enforcement of Corona SOPs across the country and made it mandatory to wear masks as a precaution.

In a tweet, Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar said that during the meeting today, NCOC decided to increase restrictions of activities contributing to a sharp increase in coronavirus positivity.

He said the NCOC has directed the provincial and Islamabad administration to tighten the implementation of coronavirus Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and crack down on violations that are taking place.

Due to the increase in demand for masks, the number of workers making masks in small factories in Faisalabad has started increasing while the prices of raw materials used in the manufacture of masks have also gone up.

It may be recalled that due to the third wave of a global pandemic, the number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan has been steadily increasing and more than 3300 cases have been reported in the last 24 hours.