PM Imran directs preventive measures amid coronavirus threat.

ISLAMABAD -- Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday has directed preventive measures in the wake of possible coronavirus epidemic in Pakistan.

The Prime Minister's Office has issued a special letter to the concerned ministries in which they have been asked to devise a coordinated strategy to deal with the threat of the coronavirus. The letter also directed to convene a high level 15-member interministerial committee meeting.

According to the letter, there have been 2,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world so far. 'Given the large number of Chinese people in Pakistan and the absence of timely security measures in view of traveling between the two countries, the possibility of coronavirus outbreak in Pakistan cannot be termed impossible', read letter.

Therefore, a comprehensive strategy should be formulated, and recommendations should be submitted to the Prime Minister's Office within a week, it added.

The interministerial committee includes Foreign Secretary, Interior and Aviation officials, DG Military Operations, DG Civil Aviation, DG Airport Security Force, NDMA Chairman and other agencies officials.

Sindh Health Minister Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho has issued a health advisory to government hospital amid the rise of deadly coronavirus. She expressed that the World Health Organization (WHO) alerted the province of dangerous virus.

Dr Pechuho expressed that WHO has advised the victims to wear masks and refrain from touching others. She further said that the virus can be spread through animals. Coronavirus makes breathing difficult for affectee.

The number of individuals suspected to have contracted the deadly coronavirus has risen to five in Pakistan, with three...