As part of its "zero-COVID" strategy, China has implemented the largest citywide lockdown since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic after a recent outbreak.
Shanghai's Pudong financial district and all of the areas found east of the Huangpu River will go into lockdown on Monday. The restriction will last for five days as Chinese authorities order the mass testing of residents in the area to sniff out any infections that may have already spread.
Shanghai's Lockdown
Officials are also expected to put the area west of the Huangpu River into its own five-day lockdown starting on Friday. The restriction means that public transportation will be suspended, non-essential businesses will be temporarily closed, and residents will be mandated to isolate themselves in their homes for the duration of the lockdown.
The country's third-largest city, Shanghai, reported 2,631 new asymptomatic infections and 47 symptomatic cases on Saturday. The new order marks the first large-scale lockdown for the city that is home to roughly 26 million people and serves as the country's financial center, as per Fox News.
Authorities are requiring all residents of Shanghai to participate in the lockdown and be part of the COVID-19 screening if they want to maintain a "green" health code status. The status would allow them to access essential establishments, such as grocery stores and even public areas.
China's failure to control the spread of the latest coronavirus outbreak has resulted in criticism from many residents online. It has also caused questioning of Beijing's zero-COVID policy and its effectiveness in keeping the virus at bay.
According to CNN, in Shanghai, a place where some of the best infrastructures in China is found, the spread of online users complaining about the lockdown means that authorities are failing to provide what they need while in lockdown. One media user said that they were unable to buy groceries or get medicine for their children.
Coronavirus Situation in China
Shanghai has never before imposed a full-scale citywide lockdown similar to what other cities have done. China's major cities, including Xi'an and Shenzhen, have been sealed off since the country's first coronavirus outbreak in 2019 in Wuhan.
On the other hand, Shanghai implemented a process known as "grid screening," a method that city health officials have hailed to be a more accurate and efficient way of carrying out mass testing. The method is in line with Beijing's new approach to keeping the coronavirus in check while minimizing consequences financially.
An official of Shanghai's Health Commission, Wu Fan, said in a news conference on Saturday that the city is unable to enter a full-scale lockdown similar to what other areas implemented. They said that this was because Shanghai is not only for its people but because it also plays a crucial part in the national economic and social development sector.
In the last five days, Shanghai officials have already conducted more than 30 million P.C.R. tests in key areas of the city. Health officials also said previously that the region had the capacity to perform more than 1.9 million tests every day, the New York Times reported.
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