National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lt-Gen Muhammad Afzal has said that the situation is under control with regard to ventilators in the country and the United States will provide 200 ventilators to Pakistan to help fight the novel coronavirus.

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on Tuesday, the NDMA Chairman said “There are about 4,200 ventilators in the public and private sectors. There are 188 people are on the ventilators while we are ordering more ventilators from all over the world.”

Afzal termed the news on the social media fake regarding 12 ventilators in Faisalabad.

“We will achieve 585 ventilators mark by the end of this month and will need more ventilators in the coming days, as we have ordered 1,310 new ventilators so there will be no problem with ventilators in the country,” he added.

The United States will donate 200 ventilators to Pakistan, the NDMA Chairman said and added currently 365 hospitals are working in Pakistan with respect to the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Afzal said there are more than 10,000 beds and right now only 2,000 beds are being used while in private sector there are 12,000 beds in 52 hospitals.

Locusts attack

He said locusts attack is not a political issue and all political, religious and regional groups must unite to combat the attack.

Locusts which had attacked the crops last year had not moved on Iran due to which they spread in Punjab and Sindh and in Punjab’s Multan, Bahawalpur and DG Khan.

In Faisalabad, Layyah and Bhakkar spraying is done with the help of machines as locusticides medicines have been purchased by Pakistan from China while 0.1m liters of medicine has been ordered by NDMA.

“50 liters of medicine has been ordered from Japan. Donations are also being made as nine planes are operating in Pakistan including five Army planes with kits imported from US.”

“More than 1,500 teams are working in these areas as first week of June is very dangerous for crops amid the locust attack,” he added.

Planes strength will reach 15 in next one to two months, he said.

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He said entomologists will be hired for one year to spread awareness as Plant Protection department is totally dysfunctional.

In northern areas this year 33 percent more snow received than usual while we have asked Pakistan Met Department for a long-term weather report on that basis we will build our response to the weather-related challenges.