Government approves lockdown gradual exit plan – Kabul

The Afghan government has approved a plan to lift the Coronavirus lockdown in the capital Kabul.

Mohammad Yaqub Haidari, Kabul’s Governor said in a conference on Thursday said that the plan was approved today by the cabinet and it would be implemented after three days of Eid.

Haidari said that a number of grocery stores, fruit shops, bakeries, health centers, domestic and foreign aid institutions, oil stations, and gas shops could continue to operate in accordance with health guidelines.

According to Haidari, the relax plan from Coronavirus lockdown is as follows:

• Restaurants that have home delivery services can provide services in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Public Health.
• Shops for electrical appliances, metalwork, carpentry, mobile shops, workshops and repair shops, car shops, and vendors can operate at a specific location daily from 2 p.m.
• Dry fruit shops, clothing stores, boutiques, grocery stores, ticket shops, photographers, and detergent stores can be open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Small shopping malls can be open from 12 to 5 pm. Tailors from 6 pm to 8 pm, goldsmiths three days a week, and from 2 to 8 pm, grocery stores, hairdressers, barbershops, and lawyers can be open from 2 to 8 p.m.
•  Mandavis of Bagh-e Qazi, Pol-e Bagh-e Omumi, Maryam High School Bazaar, Sarai-e Shamali Bazaar, and other wholesalers can operate regularly from 8 am to 12 noon.

Meanwhile, Haidari added that according to the plan:

• Small fast vehicles with license plates ending in an even number can travel on Saturdays, Mondays, and Wednesdays, and vehicles with a license plate ending with an odd number can travel on Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.
• Public transports and vehicles carrying more than three passengers are prohibited.

He emphasized that ambulances, firefighters, government vehicles, doctors and health workers, diplomats, high-ranking government officials, MPs, telecommunications staff, television, and journalists could commute following the health instructions.

The governor of Kabul called on the people to stay in their homes to prevent the outbreak of the Coronavirus on Eid days saying that “From 5 am to dusk, all roads in Kabul will be closed to vehicles and the police will prevent unnecessary traffic.”

Haidari warned that if people do not comply with the plan in Kabul, more severe restrictions will be imposed in Kabul.

Meanwhile, the number of people infected with the coronavirus in Afghanistan has reached 8,676, of which 193 have died and 938 have been treated.