Lahore: Minister for Railways and Aviation Khawaja Saad Rafiq Saturday called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and apprised him over the reforms process in railways and aviation sectors.

During the meeting, the political situation in the country was discussed.

The prime minister was further apprised that implementation of COVID-19 related Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were being ensured during travelling in railways and airlines and especially on the occasion of Eid.

Earlier in tha day, Pakistan Railways has announced to run three special trains on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha on multiple routes to facilitate passengers. 

The spokesperson of Pakistan railways said that the first Eid special train will leave from Quetta to Peshawar on Friday at 10 am. 

The second special train will leave Karachi for Lahore on Friday, while the third Eid special train from Lahore to Karachi on July 13. 

Tehran: At least five people have been killed while 44 others sustained injuries after a magnitude-6.3 earthquake jolted southern Iran on Saturday, state media reported. 

At least five people were killed by a magnitude 6.1 earthquake, with the area also hit by two later strong quakes of up to 6.3 magnitudes. 

There were more than a dozen aftershocks.

The quake was relatively shallow at a depth of roughly 10 kilometers and its epicenter was in a comparatively sparsely populated area.

Rescue teams were deployed near the epicenter, Sayeh Khosh village, which is home to around 300 people in Hormozgan province. 

People went into the streets as aftershocks continued to jolt the area after the early morning quake, which also damaged buildings and infrastructure. 

Iran's deadliest quake was a 7.4-magnitude tremor that struck in 1990, killing 40,000 people in the north of the country. 

Islamabad: Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel has urged citizens to follow Standard Operating Procedures against COVID-19 as 818 new cases were reported in the country over the last twenty-four hours.

In a video message regarding the current corona situation, he said the government is taking effective measures to control the spread of coronavirus in the country.

The Minister said National Command and Control Centre meets on daily basis to closely monitor the cases of coronavirus.

Meanwhile, four people died due to corona infection in the country during last twenty-four hours.

According to National Institute of Health, over 18,300 tests were conducted during this period and the positivity ratio was 4.47 percent.