HUNZA: Assistant Commissioner of Gojal Sub-Division, Hunza, has opposed opening of the Khunzhrav Border without taking precautionary measures, in view of the Coronavirus (Convid-19) epidemic that has affected all of Pakistan’s neighbouring countries, including China, India (1 confirmed case), Afghanistan (1 confirmed case) and Iran (9 deaths and several confirmed cases).
In a letter to the District Health Officer Hunza, the Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Zulqarnain Khan has advised to establish screening centers at Khunzhrav (15,500 ft high border crossing), and Sost, the first border down on the KKH. AC has also directed the DHO to contact the provincial and federal health ministries.
“If border is opened without safety and precautionary measures, it will not only become a cause of spreading the deadly virus but will also affect the tourism badly,” the letter reads.
Earlier, Pamir Times had launched an online poll to get public opinion about opening of the KKH, which traditionally opens on April 1 every year, after remaining closed due to heavy snowfall.
In the on-going poll, around 89% of the respondents have said that opening the border is not safe, while Coronavirus is raging in China, and spreading fast to different countries across the world.
So far, around 76 thousand people have been affected by the virus in China alone, while at least 2300 deaths have been reported by Chinese official sources.
