Amid the Coronavirus-induced lockdown, fresh COVID-19 cases witness a surge in J&K
With no major impact of lockdown witnessed on the latest spike of Coronavirus cases, experts say that only a robust strategy with clear tactics can help navigate through the pandemic.
SRINAGAR (J&K) —
Normal life remained affected in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday with the imposition of the lockdown in the wake of an alarming surge in Coronavirus cases.
Restrictions on the movement and assembly of people continued to remain imposed across the UT in the wake of the 84-hour lockdown announced by the government.
The restrictions were being implemented strictly and the people were also cooperating with the administration, officials said, adding that essential and emergency services are being allowed.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration had imposed lockdown in 11 districts — Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramulla, Budgam, Kulgam, Pulwama, Ganderbal, Jammu, Kathua, Reasi and Udhampur — at 7 PM on Thursday.
In the rest of the nine districts — Bandipora, Kupwara, Shopian, Rajouri, Poonch, Samba, Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban — the lockdown came into effect at 7 PM on Friday.
However, the government on Saturday announced the extension of the lockdown in four districts — Jammu and three others in the valley — till Thursday morning.
The ‘Corona Curfew’, which was to end at 7 AM on Monday, stands extended till 7 AM on Thursday in the four districts of Srinagar, Baramulla, Budgam and Jammu.
The officials said the curfew at night will continue in all municipal / urban local body limits of all the 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Following the surge in fresh cases of COVID-19, the J&K administration constituted a five-member Crisis Management Group (CMG) to monitor the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the union territory and take preventive, control and mitigation measures accordingly.
LG Sinha had passed directions for setting up the CMG last evening in view of a surge in infections.
The group shall “meet daily, and more often if necessary, review the rapidly evolving COVID-19 in terms of cases, testing rates, positivity, mortality, recovery, hospital occupancy and other parameters”.
It has also been tasked to review the oxygen and medicine requirement and availability at all health institutions.
The J&K government also categorised Srinagar district along with Lakhanpur containment zone with a 500-metre radius and areas on either side of the Jawahar tunnel as Red Zones in a bid to contain the disease spread.
All districts in Jammu division and all Kashmir districts except Srinagar have been categorised as Orange Zones while none has been kept in the Green category, given the scale at which the virus is spreading across the Union Territory.
The categorization was made during a review meeting of the State Executive Committee of the Department of Disaster Management, Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction chaired by Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam.
Pertinently, the Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday recorded its biggest single-day spike of 3,832 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the infection tally to 1,79,915, while a record 47 fatalities in the 24-hour-period raised the pandemic toll to 2,330, as per official figures.
Even after the imposition of Corona curfew in the Union Territory, fresh cases of COVID-19 have only seen a surge.
With no major impact of lockdown witnessed on the latest spike of Coronavirus cases, experts say that only a robust strategy with clear tactics can help navigate through the pandemic.
