The Covid-19 situation is indeed profoundly alarming in the country. That is why the federal government has hinted at shutting down all the major cities by imposing strict but broader lockdowns. According to federal minister Asad Umar, the number of critical cases has now exceeded 4,500. The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has noted that if the situation remains the same, they would have no choice but to shut down major cities.

The entire nation appears to have thrown caution to the wind insofar as observance of Covid-19-related SOPs is concerned. Unfortunately, our approach to this challenge is characterized by ambivalence, complacency and ignorance. We must not lose sight of what is happening in a neighbouring country, India, where hospitals have issued notices to say they have only a few hours of medical oxygen required to keep Covid-19 patients alive.

Saeed Mirza (Karachi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021