ISLAMABAD: Four Pakistani students residing in China have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, State Minister for Health, Dr. Zafar Mirza, said on Wednesday without disclosing the identities of the victims.
“Our four students in China have contracted the coronavirus,” Mirza said while addressing a press conference here. “They are being provided with the best medical care, and their health is improving.”
He added that Pakistan embassy’s staff in Beijing were in constant touch with those affected by the virus and other students, too.
All four students were in Wuhan – a city of 11 million in the Hubei province and the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak – where more than 500 Pakistani students are enrolled in different universities. A total of 28,000 Pakistani students are studying in China.
The deadly virus, which causes a respiratory illness, has thus far killed 132 people and infected around 6000 in mainland China where nearly 60 million people are under a partial or complete lockdown to contain the spread of the virus.
“We are contacting families of the virus-infected students as well, and ensuring them that all the best medical care will be provided to their loved ones,” Mirza said.
He added that no coronavirus case has been confirmed in Pakistan yet. “There is not even a single confirmed case of coronavirus inside Pakistan,” he said, adding that four individuals suspected of contracting the virus were being kept under observation.
The deadly virus has spread to other parts of the world as well, but so far no deaths have been reported outside of China. The US and Japan have already retrieved some of their citizens from Wuhan while other countries such as Australia, France, India, and South Korea have evacuation plans in place for hundreds of their citizens in the city.
Pakistani authorities have expressed satisfaction at the Chinese government’s initiative to control the spread of the virus.
Listing the measures to control the spread of the virus in Pakistan, Mirza said that an Emergency Operation Center has been established to monitor the situation and take all precautionary measures for the same.
He said that a Emergency Core Committee comprising 12 officials would meet daily to assess the situation. “We are also establishing a helpline at the national level to facilitate people,” he said.
Meanwhile, families of the students living in China have expressed concern over the well-being of their loved ones, and urged the government to take all necessary measures to ensure their safety.
“This is shocking for us that Pakistani students are also becoming a victim of the virus,” Zahoor Ahmad, father of Maham Zahoor who is pursuing her Master’s degree in international relations at the Xiamen University, told Arab News.
“Our government, like other countries, should take steps to evacuate Pakistani students from the virus-hit areas,” he said, adding that any negligence on the part of our government can prove “to be fatal for our children in China.”
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