Fear, stigmatization focal elements: Medics
Irfan Tramboo
SRINAGAR, Mar 22: People reaching Kashmir are rampantly hiding their travel histories in a bid to evade the quarantine which the district administration has made mandatory for people coming from abroad.
The officials overlooking the process in Srinagar told Excelsior that the people who are arriving from outside the country are criminally hiding their travel histories after they arrive at Srinagar airport, while some are even skipping the screening.
“It is happening that people are not disclosing their travel histories on arrival, few have taken different routes to reach Srinagar and have avoided the air travel; thus they sneak in easily,” the official said.
It is pertinent to mention here that the people who have been quarantined over the last few days-around 1200 by few estimates-have been put up in various facilities and have complained of poor facilities and unhygienic conditions.
Though, there have been instances where the district administration have roped in hotels to be used as quarantine facilities, but the overall impression of the quarantine facilities has been otherwise.
As per the official, there also have been instances, where the people coming from one country posed as a student from some country so far less affected by the Coronavirus. “At such instances, it has always been the insistence on part of the officer making the person present the relevant documents,” he said.
There also have been instances where, the official said, that the passenger categorically denied disclosing their travel histories, even after knowing that there are clear cut directives that the person can be imprisoned for the same.
There has been a quite spat between the Deputy Commissioner, and the Mayor of the Srinagar city, where the one is saying that they are facing an unprecedented situation and the reality is different, while the Mayor is saying that the rampant quarantine has created the fear among the incoming travellers-giving it as a reason that people are hiding their travel histories in order to escape the mandatory quarantine.
With regard to skipping the screening, hiding travel history, DC Srinagar, Shahid Iqbal Chowdhary tweeted: “Trust me if I share a summary of daily events NONE in Kashmir will sleep. Let’s keep our egos aside, work collectively and instead of raising panic and alarm help each other to improve. This is 3rd World War. Nothing less. If it passes we will have a Lifetime for all that…[sic]”
Going by the data for Saturday provided by the Nodal Officer for COVID-19, Health Services Kashmir, a total number of 3426 persons arrived at Srinagar Airport after travelling domestic; while as 288 Kashmiris also reached the airport with a travel history of outside India. However, there is no such registry maintained regarding people who have not disclosed their travel histories.
With regard to people travelling by road, Saturday’s data suggest that a total number of 1831 vehicles were screened at Lower Munda, involving 2870 travellers.
While most of the people have been traced and convinced by the authorities to disclose the details, the psychiatrists are saying that the stigmatization associated with it hold back people from disclosing the details, while even skip the screening.
“A sort of xenophobia gets developed as well the stigmatization which such patients face and that is the reason a sort of fear develops in the minds of people; in response to that, they either flee from the hospital of refuse to disclose certain important details,” said Dr Yasir Rather, Consultant Psychiatrist, Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (IMHANS), Srinagar.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
