A senior official of the Ministry of Health said that steps have been taken to postpone scheduled surgeries at government hospitals and to perform only emergency surgeries as usual due to the overcrowding of intensive care unit beds in government hospitals.

He said the move was aimed at re-utilizing government hospital intensive care beds for emergencies in the face of the ongoing corona pandemic.

He said the intensive care unit beds in government hospitals were at risk of overflowing due to the new coronavirus outbreak that was spreading across the country these days.

The admission of patients coming for surgeries from outside the province to hospitals in cities was restricted due to this situation.

The waiting list for hospitals will be extended for several more months due to the postponement of normal surgeries, the official added.