DUSHANBE, 12.05.2020. (DNA) – The Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population has assessed the country’s coronavirus situation as controlled. All commissions on COVID-19 prevention are working smoothly and efficiently at all levels, reports the ministry.

The government and the ministry have been taking all the necessary measures in the fight against the pandemic.  There is no shortage of medical masks and antiseptics in the country, as in some countries. All the protective clothing and masks are mainly produced in the republic.

Those infected with COVID-19 are receiving proper medical care, prices of medication in pharmacies is continually being regulated, explanatory work is likewise being carried out regularly, as are large-scale disinfection works, notes the ministry.

According to the ministry’s chief consultant on maternal and child health affairs Sherali Rahmatulloev, 90% of those infected with COVID-19 can be cured without taking medications, and most recover from it much like from the seasonal flu or SARS.

Sherali Rahmatulloev“Today there is no panic among the population, people try to live a measured life, complying with the recommendations of doctors. People have already realized the danger of the spread of coronavirus and most are wearing masks. Of course, despite all the preventive measures, unfortunately, there are those who neglect the generally accepted norms and rules of hygiene, and explanatory work will continue with them. People should understand that if sanitary standards are neglected, the disease will spread exponentially and become uncontrollable,” notes Rahmatulloev.

Because everything is being done in a timely manner, despite the claims of the opposite by some media outlets, Rahmatulloev expresses hope that the situation in Tajikistan will not be as critical as it has been in other countries.

Twelve days have passed since the official announcement of the first COVID-19 case. As of May 11, the number of cases has risen to 661.

RIYADH (dna) – With Saudi Arabia announcing a threefold rise in the value-added tax (VAT), an expert believes the move may also make it more expensive for people to take the Umrah and Hajj pilgrimages, reported Anadolu Agency.

“The Saudi economy has come under a double shock as a result of the collapse of global crude oil prices and due to the measures taken to curb the coronavirus outbreak,” Mohamed Ibrahim, Istanbul-based economic expert, told Anadolu Agency.

The measures also included suspending the cost-of-living allowance to address the negative impact of the coronavirus crisis.

Ibrahim said the measures will raise the costs of many items including making Umrah and Hajj expensive.

“Saudi authorities may increase the Hajj and Umrah fees to help alleviate the severity of the country s budget deficit,” he added.

According to official figures, pilgrimages bring revenue of $12 billion to the Saudi kingdom every year. The religious rituals contribute to 20% of the non-oil GDP of the country, and around 7% of the total GDP.

Earlier, quoting Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan, the official SPA news agency said the VAT rates will stand increased from 5%-15% as of July.

“The Saudi budget banks heavily on oil revenues, as the oil prices collapse greatly affected public revenues and led to a high budget deficit,” said Ibrahim.

He said that according to first-quarter data of 2020, the deficit has reached to 34.1 billion riyals ($9.1 billion).

He added that Riyadh has been exploring alternatives to compensate for the decline in oil revenues.

“These alternatives included austerity measures taken to reduce public expenditures, as well as the tendency to increase public revenues by raising the VAT along with halting to pay the cost of living allowance,” he noted.

The Saudi minister described the measures as “important to shield the kingdom s economy to overcome the unprecedented global coronavirus pandemic and its financial and economic repercussions with the least damage possible”.

Al-Jadaan said the pandemic has caused an unprecedented slump in oil demand, the decline in economic activity, and a rise in expenses needed to stem the spread of coronavirus.

According to the US-based Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Centre, Saudi Arabia has so far reported 39,048 COVID-19 cases with 246 deaths.

SAINT PETERSBURG (dna) – Five people died in a fire in a hospital for coronavirus patients in Russia s second city of Saint Petersburg on Tuesday, with some victims attached to ventilators, officials said.

Another 150 people were evacuated after the blaze broke out on the sixth floor of the Saint George hospital, the emergencies ministry said, one of a string of fires in care facilities and clinics in Russia in recent days.

The hospital had been repurposed to treat coronavirus patients and some of the dead patients had been connected to ventilators when the fire began.

Windows near the top floor of the hospital were blackened with soot as firefighters worked outside.

Four patients died in an intensive care ward, the city s Vyborg district attorney Pavel Danilov told AFP, adding that the cause of death of the fifth person was being clarified.

“Everyone is shocked by what happened,” said Svetlana Stepanova, a pensioner receiving treatment at the hospital.

“A fire in the hospital is a nightmare,” she told AFP.

Saint Petersburg governor Alexander Beglov, citing preliminary information, said a short circuit was believed to be the cause of the fire.

“A ventilator has caught fire,” his office said in a statement.

Russia s Investigative Committee, which examines serious crimes, said it had launched a probe into the incident.

A fire at a Moscow hospital treating coronavirus patients last week killed one person and forced hundreds of others to evacuate.

On Monday, a fire broke out in a retirement home in the Moscow region, killing nine people.

Two more people died in hospital later, officials said on Tuesday, bringing the total death toll to 11.

Russia reported 10,899 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, continuing a steady increase of new infections that has seen the country become a global virus hotspot.

With a total of 232,243 infections, Russia is among the top four most infected countries in the world alongside the United States, Spain and Britain.

Russia s reported mortality rate is much lower compared to other European countries hit hard by the pandemic, with 107 new deaths and 2,116 dead from the coronavirus as of Tuesday.