North Korean state media says the country is stepping up quarantine measures in coastal areas while remaining silent on the recent killing of a South Korean fisheries official by North Korean troops in the West Sea.

The North's ruling party's newspaper Rodong Sinmun on Saturday reported on nationwide efforts against the coronavirus.

It cited the example of several counties in Kangwon and Hamgyong Provinces, noting they were stepping up stringent quarantine surveillance in coastal and surrounding areas.

The paper said that guard posts are set up in a way that reflects the long coastlines in these areas and that officials were on patrol duty to make sure nobody lowers their guards.

The report also mentioned an ongoing project to facilitate the handling of waste matter swept in by sea water in strict accordance with emergency guidelines.

Back in January in the early days of the pandemic, North Korea issued a stern guideline not to touch anything found in the water and to burn coastal garbage.

The latest quarantine rules reported by the Rodong Sinmun are nothing new, but similar stories continue in recent days as North Korea is not responding to South Korea's request for a joint probe into the fatal shooting of the fisheries official.