Courtesy ISPR
Gen. Bajwa appreciates NCOC’s efforts to formulate and implement Pakistan’s response to ongoing coronavirus pandemic
The Pakistan Army, in collaboration with other national institutions, shall take all possible measures to bring comfort to the nation, especially during the holy month of Ramzan, in these challenging times, Chief of Army Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa said on Wednesday.
Lauding the National Command and Operations Center’s efforts to form and implement Pakistan’s response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Army chief noted that work had been undertaken despite “resource and time constraints.”
In a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Gen. Bajwa also complimented the NCOC’s “civil-military components.” He emphasized the need to continue “stratified risk assessment, managing the trinity of health crisis, economic slide and psycho-social impact through efficient resource management,” it added.
Earlier, during a visit to the NCOC, Gen. Bajwa was briefed about “COVID-19-related multi-sector situation, implementation of NCC decisions, projections about likely spread of the disease in Pakistan, and support being extended to civil administration against pandemic” by Maj. Gen. Asif Mehmood Goraya, the director-general (operations and planning) at the NCOC.
According to the ISPR, the Army chief was also briefed on the “national strategy” for testing, tracing and quarantining of COVID-19 patients. The aim of the strategy is to identify disease spread, and focused clusters/hotspots to enable targeted lockdowns, and need-driven resource optimization at all levels, it added.
Pakistan currently has 10,811 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, and 2,352 recoveries. It has reported 228 deaths from the virus. The federal government has eased movement restrictions, raising fears that the pace at which the virus is spreading in Pakistan will soon spiral out of control.