Today, the Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar warned the nation regarding a serious spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country.

He said that National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) has observed that in October, on average only 8 people were dying due to COVID-19 daily, but now the average number of daily casualties has increased to about 60 per day and the number of new cases has quadrupled in the last two months.

Umar, 59, was briefing the media after chairing the NCOC meeting in Islamabad. The minister said that the nation was not observing Covid- SOPs as much as it did during the first wave of the pandemic and it's alarming. He noted:

One of the major differences from the first wave is that there is no unified stance on coronavirus second wave. The public and political leadership need to follow SOPs strictly, only then we can contain the spread of the viral infection.

Criticizing the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) leaders on holding social gatherings during the pandemic, the minister said:

Democracy does not mean political leaders risk people's health and businesses.

He also notified the public that Prime Minister Imran Khan will chair a meeting of the NCOC tomorrow to review the latest coronavirus situation in the country and take necessary decisions.

The Planning Minister said the government will soon announce a relief package for the sectors closed in the second wave of the pandemic. He also paid tributes to the healthcare providers who are rendering their services to help people in the pandemic.