Series of earthquakes shake Indonesia

By Ludya Arica Bakti in Indonesia
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

 An earthquake of magnitude 5.8 occurred on the afternoon of June 9, making residents in South Buru Regency panicky and scattered outside the house. They claimed to have felt the tremor for at least five seconds. The earthquake shock was also felt in other areas of Buru Regency.

The Indonesian Agency for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics (BMKG) released the earthquake parameters around 11.56 West Indonesia Time. 

The strength of the earthquake which was updated to magnitude 5.8 occurred at a depth of 20 km and the location of this seismic earthquake was 68 km to the south of Namrole City, South Buru Regency in Maluku province. The earthquake had no tsunami potential.

Based on the shock map, the BMKG records earthquake shocks which is measured by the Modified Mercalli intensity (MMI) units as Namrole III-IV MMI, Piru III MMI, Namlea II-III MMI and Ambon II MMI. 

The MMI Scale III provides a picture of shocks or vibrations that are felt in real at home whereas MMI IV scale explains the vibrations felt by many people in the house, outside by some people, broken pottery, rattling windows or doors and walls sounding. 

The head of the BMKG Earthquake and Tsunami Center, Rahmat Triyono, disclosed that, seeing the epicenter location and depth of the hypocenter, the earthquake that occurred was a type of shallow earthquake due to local fault activity. Until 12:23 West Indonesian Time (WIT), the BMKG monitoring results had not shown any aftershock earthquake activity.

It may be recalled that Banten Province was rocked by an earthquake three times only the other day (June 8). 

The first earthquake occurred early morning, at around 00:23 WIT, magnitude 4.0. The earthquake was located at 7.1 South Latitude (LS), 106.07 East Longitude (BT), 62 kilometers (Km) southwest of Lebak Regency, Banten, with a depth of the epicenter 17 km. 

The second earthquake followed at 05.26 WIT with weaker strength, having magnitude of 2.6. With a depth of 9 km, its location was at 6.8 LS-106.34 east of Bayah, Lebak Regency, Banten. 

Furthermore, the third aftershock magnitude 3.3 was recorded at 14.33 WIT with the location being at 6.96 LS-105.23 East, located 50 km Southwest of Sumur, Pandeglang Regency, Banten, with an earthquake centre depth of 8 km. 

Banten had also endured a series of earthquakes the previous day (June 7) as the BMKG recorded at least nine earthquakes having shaken the area. The results of the analysis of the source mechanism showed that the earthquake had a mechanism of sliding or strike slip.

Coronavirus Update: No respite yet

By Mukhtar Alam
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Sindh reported yet another 1,465 new COVID-19 cases, with 26 related deaths of patients living in the province, on June 8, pushing the tally of infections registered in Sindh to 39,555 and deaths to 679 including eight children.

According to the official summary of the disease, as many as 1,477 peoples were tested positive for coronavirus during the last 24 hours, ending at 9 am on June 8, while the new deaths figured as 29. 

Among the new cases, there were 12 persons who lived outside the province and were received at Karachi, upon their return from abroad, thus increasing the number of such citizens to 216, with a total 14 deaths. 

In the meantime, the number of infections in children living in the age brackets of 0-9 years also continued increasing in Sindh. There were 1,693 such age group children who were reported COVID-19 positive till June 2, which increased to 1,974, with eight deaths, according to an official report updated on June 8.

The health department’s daily summary revealed that another 1,075 people tested positive for the virus during the last 24 hours, whereas the latest accumulated death toll stood as 564. In all 24 new COVID-19 deaths occurred in Karachi. 

Already with 16,261 isolated at homes, government centres or hospitalized, the megapolis didn’t witness any respite from the disease. 

The 24 people who lost lives either in hospitals or homes included 18 men aged between 35 to 78 years, while six women were in the age brackets of 55 to 91 years. 

On the other hand, Shaheed Benazirabad and Larkana districts witnessed one death each of 60 and 85 years respectively, while three other deceased persons (aged 43, 55 and 74) were registered as out of province residents. 

Apart from Karachi, other districts of Sindh also reported new COVID-19 infections during the last 24 hours, including Hyderabad (57 cases), Shaheed Benazirabad (39), Sanghar (34), Ghotki (34), Tharparkar (36), Khairpur (30), Larkana (26), Dadu (17), Sukkur (15), Badin (13) and other districts. As many as 8,513 people were tested during the last 24 hours.

Sindh moves in to facilitate entrepreneurs

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

In an effort to encourage the ease on doing business programme, the Sindh Investment Department, in collaboration with the World Bank, has taken a few steps for promotion of trade in the province. 

Under the ease of doing business programme, now provision has been made to obtain business permits from different related departments through online web portal. This will facilitate the entrepreneurs desiring to start their businesses in Sindh to get permission quickly, official sources told PNFS.

In this regard, the Sindh Investment Department, with the help of Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA), achieved another target of reducing the time for issue building permits. Now the investors could get approval of building plans in categories II, III and IV in 30 days instead of 60 days.

It’s worth mentioning here that the duration of approval of building plans which fall under category-I had already been curtailed from 60 to 30 days and was further brought down to 15 days. 

Furthermore, the Sindh Investment Department, with the assistance of the World Bank, was also working on competitive and livable city of Karachi (CLICK) programme which will enable the businesses to obtain all provincial and local approvals through one window facility.

WHO issues fresh guidelines, emphasizes on wearing masks for COVID-19 protection

By Syed Sajid Aziz in USA
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

As the entire planet faces the wrath of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued fresh guidance for the use of masks on the basis of evolving evidence. 

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General, WHO, shared the new guidance over the weekend, warning the people about the dangers of ignoring the other safety measures while wearing the masks. 

He cautioned the people against developing a false sense of security when they were wearing masks as the protective gear but did not take care of other preventive matters. 

“I cannot say this clearly enough: Masks alone will not protect you from COVID-19. Masks are only a benefit as part of a comprehensive approach,” Dr Ghebreyesus clarified. 

“Masks can be used either for protection of healthy persons (worn to protect oneself when in contact with an infected individual) or for source control (worn by an infected individual to prevent onward transmission). However, the use of a mask alone is insufficient to provide an adequate level of protection or source control, and other personal and community level measures should also be adopted to suppress transmission of respiratory viruses,” the WHO advised. 

In places with widespread transmission, WHO has advised medical masks for all people working in clinical areas of a health facility, not only workers dealing with patients with COVID-19 which meant that when a doctor is doing a ward round on the cardiology or palliative care units even without confirmed COVID-19 patients was advised to wear a medical mask.

In areas with community transmission, people aged 60 years or over, or those with underlying conditions, have been advised to wear a medical mask in situations where physical distancing is not possible. 

The WHO has continued to recommend people, who are sick with symptoms of COVID-19 should remain at home, and should consult their healthcare provider while people confirmed to have COVID-19 should be isolated and cared for in a health facility and their contacts should be quarantined.

Chinese technicians return to expedite CPEC projects

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services) 

The Metallurgical Corporation of China Limited (MCC), the country’s largest steel structure producer, has sent Chinese technicians on a charter flight operated by Air China to Karachi. 

The team comprising of 78 Chinese technicians along with a consignment volume of 1.7 tons carrying urgently-needed epidemic prevention supplies and treatment medicines, including medical masks, protective suits, infrared thermometers and glucometers was sent to ensure projects under the timely execution of the CPEC projects, it was reported. 

These staff had returned home for the Chinese New Year holidays earlier this year and remained stuck up there due to the COVID-19 pandemic and moratorium on flights. 

In order to prevent and control the epidemic, the company has taken a series of measures aimed at ensuring smooth operation of the projects. 

All the workers in Saindak mining area, both of Chinese as well Pakistani origin, were maintaining sound health and spirit, the company reckoned.