ISLAMABAD, APR 1 – Here are some of the news stories we are expecting to follow today (Wednesday):

• Prime Minister Imran Khan will chair a National Coordination Committee to discuss strategies to counter the coronavirus in Pakistan. The committee will decide whether the countrywide lockdown will be extended or called off.
• Funeral prayers for Jang Group publisher Mir Javedur Rahman, who passed away on Tuesday, will be held after Zuhr prayers. He will be buried in the Society graveyard in Karachi’s PECHS. Political leaders are expected to attend the funeral.
• As of Wednesday, 2,025 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in Pakistan while 26 have died of it. Around 65 people have recovered.
• The lockdown in Sindh has entered its 10th day. NADRA and telecommunication companies haven’t yet provided the Sindh government with the data needed to locate and help poor families.
• The lockdown has been intensified across Punjab. The provincial government has directed that all shops open by 9am and close by 5pm. The order doesn’t apply to medical stores.
• The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has imposed a ban on congregational prayers of more than five people.
• ICYMI: Sindh now has its first drive-thru coronavirus testing facility in Karachi.It has been set up at the parking area of Bagh Ibne Qasim near the Bahria Icon Tower. Click here to read the full story.