Govt to soon offer Covid jab to children aged five to 11: health minister.

Federal Health Minister Qadir Patel on Wednesday announced that the government will begin vaccinating children between the ages of five and 11 against coronavirus "within a month or two" as he called for a return to Covid precautionary measures.

At a media briefing of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) in Islamabad today, he said vaccines for children in the 5-11 year age bracket were only available with Pfizer.

"We have engaged in a dialogue with them. Hopefully, by August or September, we will receive 6.8 million doses from Pfizer which is a step forward," he said.

Covid cases in Pakistan, the minister noted, had increased in the last few days. "The situation is not worrisome [yet] but it requires the public to be cautious."

For this purpose, the government is proposing three standard operating procedures (SOPs) that need to be "followed religiously", he said. "We have made masks mandatory in all closed gatherings, airlines, railways and public transport. Social distancing and proper sanitisation are also very important."

Patel cautioned that Eidul Azha and Muharram were coming up during which large public gatherings are typically held. "We are mulling over strategies for these occasions as well, as the threat of coronavirus cases rising persists during these months,' he said.

He added that the government has also decided to increase mass testing across the country on the orders of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for which instructions had been sent to the health secretaries of all four provinces.

PM chairs meeting on Covid

Patel's presser followed a meeting PM Shehbaz chaired on Covid today. In the meeting, he stressed on implementation of SOPs in crowded areas.

It was attended by federal ministers Abdul Qadir Patel, Rana Sanaullah, Sherry Rehman, chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), information secretary, secretary of the National Health Services and other senior officers. The...