ISLAMABAD: The National Command and Operations Center (NCOC) has ordered a complete ban on wedding ceremonies across the country.

New and stricter sanctions were ordered at a key meeting of the National Command and Operations Center (NCOC) on Sunday. Due to the third and most dangerous wave of the coronavirus, the NCOC has decided to ban outdoor weddings as well as indoor ones from April 5.

According to a statement issued by the committee, it has also been decided to extend the lockdown in the severely affected areas for to curb virus spread.

The meeting also considered options to reduce inter-provincial transport. The final decision on transport will be taken in consultation with the provinces. The meeting directed the provinces to achieve the vaccination targets in a timely manner.

Earlier, Dr Faisal Sultan said that China and other countries are more dependent on the vaccine, while a consignment of 1,060,000 doses would arrive from China by Tuesday.

Dr. Faisal Sultan said that Pakistan has been further delayed in getting the vaccine AstraZeneca vaccine from the World Health Organization. Pakistan was to receive 2.8 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine in March.

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Punjab Special Assistant for Information Firdous Ashiq Awan said that the mask has been made mandatory in Punjab after the alarming situation of Covid-19. While a ban on wedding ceremonies is being considered across the province, the final decision will be made on Monday, March 29.

Failure to wear a mask can result in fines and up to six months in prison, he said. The intensity of corona is higher in 5 major cities of Punjab.

On the other hand, the rate of positive cases of corona virus in Lahore has reached 23%. Punjab Health Secretary said that there are 214 patients in ICUs of the province. A complete lockdown for 15 days in Lahore is also under consideration.