ISLAMABAD
Taking notice of the growing number of cases due to the new Covid-19 Omicron sub-variant, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed for the reopening of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).
The premier also directed the Ministry of National Health Services to produce a report on the current situation of the Covid-19 cases in the country. He said that the NCOC would be restored immediately.
The case emerged a month after the government of former prime minister Imran Khan shut down the National Command and Operation Centre – a dedicated platform to fight Covid – in March.
The National Institute of Health (NIH) a day earlier confirmed that the country has identified its first case of a new omicron sub-variant which is causing a growing number of Covid-19 cases in different parts of the world.
“NIH has detected the first case of omicron sub-variant BA.2.12.1,” the country’s central health authority responsible for developing its pandemic response said in a tweet. “This new sub-variant is causing an increasing number of cases in different countries.” It added the best preventive measure against the new sub-variant – besides wearing masks at crowded places – was Covid-19 vaccination.
The omicron variant of the coronavirus was first reported to the World Health Organisation from South Africa in November 2021. Experts said it was more contagious than the previous coronavirus strains, though it was not as dangerous as them. The new omicron spinoff, known by its technical name, BA.2.12.1, is also said to be highly transmissible but not so deadly.
The country reported its first coronavirus case in February 2020 and launched a vaccination campaign about a year later to immunise its people against the disease. It also urged its citizens to wear face masks and practice social distancing.
