Notification clarified all public and private educational institutes and madrassas would remain closed
QUETTA: Schools and educational institutes throughoutBalochistan would be shut downtill March 15 as part of the measures being taken to prevent coronavirus and for the safety of children, the provincial government said in a notification issued Wednesday.
The notification clarified that all public and private educational institutes, as well as madrassas, would remain closed after two coronavirus cases were confirmed in Pakistan — one each in Karachi and Islamabad.
The notification was approved by Secretary Secondary Education Department.
"Matriculation Examination under Balochistan Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education are also being postponed and the remaining papers will be organized in due course of time," it added.
In a video message,Balochistan education minister said: "The ongoing examinations of Grade 9 and Matriculation are also suspended. We want to keep our children safe.
"This step has only been taken as a safety measure and no one needs to panic," he added.
On the other hand, Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani also announced that the schools in the province would remain closed on Thursday and Friday"Sindh Govt has decided to close all the schools of province for Thursday & Friday (27th & 28th Feb)," Ghani wrote on Twitter.
Speaking to Geo News, the provincial minister said: "We took this step as a preventive measure for coronavirus as parents are concerned about their children.
"We have shut down schools for two days, which will be followed by Saturday and Sunday. The situation will remain stable and we will reopen schools on Monday," he added.
Two cases confirmed
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza confirmed lateWednesday that two coronavirus cases were reported in Pakistan. "Both cases are being taken care of according to clinical standard protocols & both of them are stable," he wrote on Twitter.
Dr Mirza emphasised that there was "no need to panic [as] things are under control" and that no one should "share information of the patient". The patient in Karachi, as well as his family, was immediately placed in quarantine at a private hospital on the National Stadium Road while the one in Islamabad was moved to the capital's Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS).
The first confirmed coronavirus patient, a22-year-old man, had arrived in an aeroplane from Iran and has a history of travel to Tehran from where he reportedly acquired the virus, a spokesperson for the Sindh health department said.
The health department was, as of reporting time, examining the passengers he has travelled with. It was also set to dispatch a team to inspect his residence as well as his neighbourhood.
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