LAHORE - Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has said that coronavirus testing capacity has been increased in the province after the number of BSL-3 labs was now increased to eight.
Addressing a news conference here on Saturday, CM Buzdar said 6,000 people would be tested daily for the coronavirus from today (Sunday). He said that funds of Rs620 million were spent to make the labs operational. Speaking about the protest of patients at the Lahore Expo Field Hospital, the Chief Minister assured that he was looking into the matter and an inquiry had been ordered.
“In the coming days, we will also recommend the federal government to approve declaring homes of some COVID-19 patients quarantine centres,” he said. He said smart sampling would begin in six cities, including Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan, Gujrat, Gujrwanwala and Faisalabad. Smart sampling was collecting samples only from a certain number of randomly selected households, he said. According to the plan, people would be divided under different categories – media workers, law enforcers, pregnant women admitted in hospitals, government workers at management offices, tuberculosis and AIDS patients, health workers and prisoners in jails. These people would be tested for COVID-19.
The CM said that the province had enough protective equipment for every healthcare worker. He added the provincial government was in talks with the federal government to reopen power-looms, construction, iron, steel and other industries that had labour colonies for their workers.