pakistan 
The Punjab government has imposed a lockdown in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan, and Faisalabad as the province sees a massive spike in the coronavirus cases.
Lockdown was imposed late Monday night.
As per the notification issued, the lockdown is to remain imposed in Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, and Multan until August 31.
All markets and business activities in these districts – according to the notification – will function till 8:00 pm. An exemption has been granted to pharmacies, medical stores, petrol pumps, tandoors, hospitals, milk and dairy shops, oil depots, food takeaways and e-commerce, and all kinds of mandis, including cattle, grain, fruit, and vegetable mandis.
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The decision to reimpose restrictions was initially taken by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) after observing the worsening situation of the pandemic in the country.
The Punjab government has also banned indoor dining in its order; however, outdoor dining will be allowed till 10 pm. The provincial government has asked restaurants to provide customers with the takeaway service for 24 hours.
Similarly, indoor weddings have been banned w.e.f. August 8, 2021, and only outdoor weddings have been allowed with a maximum of 400 guests under strict COVID protocols. Furthermore, timings for outdoor weddings shall be till 10:00 pm.
The Punjab government has ordered the complete closure of shrines in the cities. Similarly, a ban has been imposed on indoor gatherings, including cultural, religious/musical//miscellaneous events. There is also a complete ban on contact sports, including Boxing, Martial Arts, Karate, Rugby, Kabaddi, Water Polo, & Wrestling.
Regular office working hours for public/private offices are to continue. However, the attendance level is reduced from 100% to 50%.
The maximum occupancy level of public transport has also been reduced from 70% to 50%.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Imran Khan summoned a meeting on the pandemic. It spirals out of control, with over 8% positivity ratio being reported in the past three days.
The meeting pondered over the surge in coronavirus positive cases and thought upon measures to contain the spread of the Delta variant of virus in the country.
