write an essay of uncertain situation of the city due to corona virus Covid-19

The COVID-19 pandemic in Pakistan is part of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have reached Pakistan on 26 February 2020, when a student in Karachi tested positive upon returning from Iran.^[2] , cases had been registered in all four provinces, the two autonomous territories, and the federal territory of Islamabad.^[3]

On 1 March, Chief Minister of Sindh, Syed Murad Ali Shah, announced the closure of all educational institutes in Sindh until 13 March,^[204][205] which was later extended until 30 May.^[206] On 12 March, the Government of Sindh also announced that the remaining PSL matches at National Stadium, Karachi would be held behind closed doors.^[207] The Sindh government announced on 13 March that all educational institutions will remain closed until 30 May^[148] imposed a temporary ban on marriage halls, shrines and festivals in the province on 14 March.^[208]

On 20 March, the Pakistan Army helped set up a 10,000-bed field hospital at Karachi's Expo Centre to isolate and treat confirmed patients. ALl expenses for its establishment were born by the provincial government.^[209] On 21 March, the Government of Sindh announced a lockdown in the province for 14 days from morning of 24 March, ordering all public transport, markets, offices, shopping malls, restaurants, and public areas to be shut down.^[74][210] The Sindh government announced paid leave for all workers during the lockdown, and said no would be laid off during the period under Section 3 of the Sindh Epidemic Diseases Act (2014) and other relevant labor laws.^[211] The province banned intra-city transport to minimize the outbreak and multiple violators were issued fines, impounded and canceled.^[212] The national army was called to enfore the lockdown.^[213] On 23 March, an isolation and quarantine centre was completed at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical College in Karachi which also provided free tests of suspected cases with results in 8 hours of sample submission.^[189]

The Pakistan Cricket Board, on request from the Sindh Government, agreed to convert its Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre into a temporary living area for paramedic staff working at the makeshift hospital at Expo Centre, Karachi on 24 March.^[214] The local police detained 472 people in various districts of the province on the day, with 222 of them in Karachi alone and a total of FIRs were registered. The cases pertained to hoarding and profiteering of safety masks and hand sanitisers, large gatherings, opening shops and restaurants and travelling in passenger buses. Multiple violations of the lockdown were observed in several places across the province such as gatherings on the beach, residents being out and major markets, shopping centres, bazaars and restaurants remained open.^[78] As a result, a taskforce meeting led by the Chief Minister was held on the next day on 25 March to take more stringent measures to ensure that all residents abided by the government orders of. It was resolved that all grocery stores and shops apart from pharmacies and medical stores to remain closed between 8pm and 8am. The Sindh Inspector General of Police, Javed Ahmed Mahar was directed to make measures taken in connection with the lockdown and make certain that people were not allowed to roam freely in the city unnecessarily. Additionally, the Chief Secretary and Karachi Commissioner were ordered to ensure that big factories remained closed during the lockdown and direct banks to keep only important branches operational.^[215]

On 25 March, the provincial health department officials began coronavirus case mapping as per directives by the Chief Minister. He further tasked them with sharing the data with deputy commissioners so necessary measures could be taken to contain the outbreak in their respective areas. Orders were also given to improve sampling arrangements, upon which 18 vehicles of the Indus Hospital were dedicated for collecting samples from homes. The health officials briefed the Chief Minister about a new machine made at at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, which could test secretions from the nose instead of testing throat secretion as was the current procedure. At this, the CM directed the provincial Chief Secretary to consult with medical experts whether procuring the machine would be feasible and if they deemed it to be beneficial, place an order for 100 machines. The CM further stated that he would request the federal government for a special aircraft to transport the machines if the government decided to procure them.^[79]

On the same day, the local government also arranged to launch a mobile service across the province to provide rations to the needy along with daily wages to those affected by the pandemic. A number was dedicated for the service and those in need could text there. Moreover, a warehouse was established for storage of ration bags and a helpline set up for people to register for acquiring the bags. The CM also ordered to release Rs341 million for carrying out administrative work under district administrations and spending on facilities provided to pilgrims.^[216] Shortly afterward, reports emerged that rations were being denied to minority Hindus and Christians in the coastal areas of Karachi. The Saylani Welfare Trust, carrying out the relief work, said that the aid was reserved for Muslims alone.^[217][218] On 14 April, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom expressed concern with the discrimination. Other organisations, including Edhi Foundation, JDC Welfare Organization and Jamaat-e-Islami are reported to have stepped forward to provide relief to the minorities.^[219]

On 27 March, public holidays were extended till 5 April in the province while markets and shopping malls were to remain closed till 10 April. Ajmal Wazir, the adviser to the CM stated that the government the government had decided on tax exemption to facilitate the business community and protect jobs with Rs17.5 billion reserved for wheat procurement. An amount of Rs8 billion was also approved for district hospitals to enable them by the urgent supplies.^[220] To further enforce lockdown, the Sindh govt restricted movement between 8AM and 5PM, while all grocery stores were ordered to be closed by 5 PM. These restrictions went into force on 28 March.^[221] Sindh Province also received 500,000 K N95 masks from China.^[82] On 29 March, the Sindh CM approved a proposal to release about 4,000 convicts from prison in order to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak in the province's jails.^[222]

On 30 March, the Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah made public a mobile application, namely the Sindh Relief Initiative, on which welfare organisations could register to work with the provincial government for the distribution of ration among daily-wagers at their doorstep.^[223] Also on the day, the Mayor of Karachi, Wasim Akhtar designated five cemeteries in the city for burials of those who died due to coronavirus. He said that only a few close relatives of the deceased could enter the cemetery for burial, adding that the body would be brought into the cemetery with protective measures and no last sighting would be allowed. The mayor also wrote to the National Disaster Management Authority, the provincial government and the Governor Imran Ismail requesting funds to provide essential equipment and ventilators to Karachi Metropolitan Corporation hospitals.^[224] The Sindh government issued a circular directing private schools across the province to pay full salaries to its teachers on time the same day. Another directive was also declared for factories and other private entities operating in the province to disburse salaries to their employees by 31 March.^{[citation needed]}

On 2 April, the Sindh government extended the lockdown until April 14. It also announced new restrictions, closing down shrines and other holy sites while suspending inter and intra-city public transport. There was also a restriction on from movement of people from 5:00pm to 08:00am except for armed forces personnel, doctors and health professionals, persons requiring immediate medical care and persons on goods transport.^[225][5] The local government purchased 50,000 testing kits for the province in early April.^[226]