Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun will set up an office at Seoul City Hall to oversee quarantine efforts in the capital region.

According to Chung's secretariat on Monday, the office will be established at the City Hall's COVID-19 situation room for the Seoul metropolitan area.

The decision comes as the daily infection increase in the country exceeded one-thousand for the first time on Sunday, of which nearly 800 were in the metro area.

Chung worked from a temporary office in the southeastern city of Daegu in February, following the first major wave in the epidemic that originated from the Shincheonji religious sect.

In response to calls to further heighten social distancing to Level Three, Chung on Monday stressed that such a decision should be the last resort for authorities and that a careful review would be necessary.

In the meantime, the prime minister urged the entire nation to focus on adhering to the enhanced distancing and quarantine measures.