In an effort to contain the fourth wave of the coronavirus, Pakistan has decided to allow Sikh pilgrims to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur beginning next month.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) made the decision to open the Kartarpur shrine on Saturday due to the upcoming death anniversary of Sikhism founder Baba Guru Nanak Dev on September 22.
According to the Dawn newspaper, the NCOC conference unanimously agreed to allow Sikh pilgrims to visit Kartarpur next month under rigorous COVID-19 rules.
It is worth noting that, as a result of the Delta variant, India was in category C from May 22 to August 12, and special permission was required for those travelling from the country, including Sikh pilgrims.
However, fully vaccinated individuals with certificates will now be permitted to enter Pakistan if they present real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test results that are no more than 72 hours old.
Aside from that, Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) will be performed at airports, and if a positive result is obtained, the individual will be denied entry into Pakistan.
Furthermore, due to non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), a maximum of 300 persons will be authorised to gather at the darbar at one time.
According to a Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) official, Pakistan has implemented three categories to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
Despite the fact that 3,842 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally of confirmed cases to 1,123,812, according to data given by the Ministry of National Health Services, the prohibition on visiting Kartarpur was relaxed.
Another 75 persons died during this time period, bringing the total death toll from coronavirus to 24,923. The optimism rating was 7.18 per cent, the highest in three days.
The vaccination campaign was ongoing, and a shipment of 2 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine arrived in Pakistan on Saturday to refill supplies. In total, 46.45 million doses have been provided in the country thus far.
Pakistan also handed life-saving COVID-19 medical equipment to Sri Lanka on Saturday. Pakistan’s High Commissioner, Mohammad Saad Khattak, paid a visit to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and handed out equipment on behalf of the Pakistani government.
According to an official statement from the Pakistan government, the equipment comprised 75 ventilators and 150 C-PAP breathing aid machines manufactured in Pakistan.