Pakistan Cricket Board agrees to convert High Performance Centre to paramedic lodging

Karachi, March 24: The Pakistan Cricket Board, acting on a request from the Sindh Government, has agreed to convert its Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre into a temporary lodging facility for paramedic staff working at a makeshift hospital to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic here.

Pakistan has reported 803 COVID-19 cases and six deaths so far. Globally, the death count has crossed 16,000.

"All the paramedic staff are our heroes as in these challenging and difficult times, they are risking their lives to save the lives and wellbeing of many affected by COVID-19," PCB Chief Operating Officer Salman Naseer said.

...the PCB is pleased to offer its state-of-the-art Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre as a temporary lodging and boarding for the paramedic staff working at Expo Centre hospital so that they can serve those suffering from COVID-19 more effectively and efficiently," Naseer added.

Meanwhile, former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar has called for a national lockdown, lambasting, what he called, casual approach of a few people amid the rapidly-growing crisis.

In a Youtube video, he said he saw a lot of people treating the crisis-forced break like a picnic. "I had gone out for an important work. I did not shake hands with anyone or hugged anyone. I saw people going to hills for picnic. People are visiting each other, restaurants are still open," he said.

"In India people have imposed self curfew, even in Rwanda people are careful but in Pakistan people are not listening. I don't understand what our people are doing. They don't understand what a big threat it is," he added.

"I request the Pakistan government to take strong action and impose a lockdown in Punjab, clamp section 144. This has to be done," he said.