As Pakistan faces a rising number of cases, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) revised border protocols on Sunday.
An official statement from NCOC read that the current policy of Land Border Management with Afghanistan and Iran has been reviewed. This was done to ensure regulated inbound pedestrian movement and effective management of COVID protocols at Border Terminals(BTS).
According to the given statement, the action occurred in light of the emergence of various COVID variants and to contain them.
As reported, from May 4/5 Midnight, the authorities will seal the Inbound Pedestrian movement. However, this does not include Pakistanis or any health emergencies.
Quarantine Protocols After New Border Protocols
Moreover, this only implies to incoming pedestrians. The protocol will not cause any trouble for cargo operations. Border terminals would remain operational for a whole week. It noted that thermal scanning for all drivers and co-drivers will be carried out on arrival at the border terminals.
Furthermore, it stated that inbound pedestrians will undergo Rapid Antigen Test (RAT). It is mandatory to quarantine. However, only for COVID positive Pakistani national. Others would return back to their countries.
The assigned restriction will remain in place till 19/20th May. A further review would depend on the COVID situation in the country. Ministry of national health reported 4,414 new cases of 2nd May.
As India already struggles with a deadly wave, other regional states are stepping up precautions.
