Rajouri becomes Corona-free as lone patient discharged
*MHA/UT relaxation guidelines yet to be implemented
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, May 8: Two more persons-one each in Kathua and Udhampur districts-who had recently returned from outside Jammu and Kashmir tested positive for COVID-19 today taking total number of Corona cases in the Jammu region to 70 and active cases to 14 as Rajouri today became Corona-free with lone active case from the district treated and discharged from the Chest Diseases Hospital, Bakshi Nagar.
Both the persons tested positive for COVID-19 today were part of stranded persons who had returned from outside and were under administrative quarantine in Kathua and Udhampur districts.
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A worker from Udhampur district, who had been under administrative quarantine at a Government building, tested positive for Corona at the Command Hospital in Udhampur.
Lt Col Inam Danish Khan told the Excelsior that they have conducted 6687 tests for the virus so far till this evening. The worker, who was under administrative quarantine, was tested positive tonight.
Immediately, the worker was isolated and shifted to Chest Diseases Hospital in Bakshi Nagar. His contact tracing is on and all of them will be isolated and subjected to sample testing tomorrow. The Command Hospital Udhampur has been conducting sample tests from Kishtwar, Doda, Ramban and Udhampur districts, Lt Col Khan said.
A 60 year old worker from Basohli tehsil in Kathua district, who had recently crossed Lakhanpur and was under institutional quarantine at Haat & Craft Centre Basohli, has also tested positive. He too was on way to the Chest Diseases Hospital, Bakshi Nagar when the reports last came in.
Deputy Commissioner Kathua OP Bhagat told the Excelsior that contact tracing of the worker, who had travel history to New Delhi, is on and they are being isolated for sample testing.
Kathua district which had become Corona-free a day before has again joined the list of Corona patients with Basohli man testing positive. The previous Corona case of Kathua district, a truck conductor from Hiranagar, has been discharged from the hospital after treatment.
However, Rajouri district today again became free from COVID-19 as its lone positive case, a 20-year old youth from Thanna Mandi who had returned to his hometown from Kashmir via Mughal Road, being treated and discharged from the hospital, Chest Diseases Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Rajeshwar Sharma said.
Rajouri district has total of four Corona cases. Its previous three cases had already been cured and sent home.
With two positive cases today, total number of Corona cases in Jammu region have gone up to 70 and active cases to 14. Fifty-five Corona patients have been treated and discharged while there has been one death.
Meanwhile, even five days after fresh guidelines were issued by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) which were subsequently endorsed by the Jammu and Kashmir Government, the directives are yet to be implemented on ground even in three Green districts of Jammu and Kashmir which were completely free of Coronavirus what to say of Red and Orange Zones.
Jammu region has three Green Zone districts including Poonch, Kishtwar and Doda as not even a single COVID-19 positive case has been reported from there while Udhampur, Ramban, Reasi and Rajouri are Orange Zone districts and Jammu, Samba and Kathua fall in Red Zone. Entire Kashmir province has been declared Red Zone.
Among other relaxations in lockdown, the MHA and the UT Government had allowed movement of buses with 50 percent strength, taxis/cabs with two passengers besides one driver and opening of majority of shops especially in rural areas barring liquor and some others which were prohibited.
However, official sources told the Excelsior that in all three Green Zone districts of J&K, all of which fall in Jammu Zone, the directives of the MHA followed by the Union Territory Government haven’t been implemented leading to enormous inconvenience to the people. The administration has its own logic that situation in the neighbouring districts is not conducive for movement of transport while stranded people are returning in large numbers from other districts and their mix-up in transport could lead to problems and give setback to anti-COVID fight.
But, majority of people who rang up the Excelsior asserted that it was time to resume transport services, at least within the districts so that the people stuck in various areas for one and a half months of lockdown could reach to their houses or other destinations.
District Magistrate Poonch Rahul Yadav said as of now they will not be resuming the transport services.
“The District Magistrates have been given the powers to take call on resumption of services. We need to be very cautious. For now, we will not be resuming the transport services in Poonch district,” Yadav said.
Though Poonch is a Green Zone district, its neighbouring Rajouri district is an Orange Zone having four Coronavirus cases though all of have been treated. Poonch district doesn’t have a single COVID-19 positive case so far for which the people also credited the district civil and police administration.
Shops in Poonch district are also being opened on rotation basis.
In Kishtwar district, which is also a Green Zone with not just one case of COVID-19, District Magistrate Rajinder Singh Tara confirmed that they haven’t resumed transport saying lot of workers are returning home from different parts of the country and if even one of them get mixed-up in the transport, this can lead to problems.
“Definitely, we will resume transport services but first all workers who are returning will be allowed to settle down in the quarantine centres so that there are no chances of any kind of mix-up,” Tara said, adding resumption of transport services could take some time.
Another Green Zone district of Doda also has similar story to tell. Though District Magistrate Doda Sagar D Doifode wasn’t available for comments, SSP Doda Mumtaz Ahmed said the administration is yet to take call on resumption of transport services citing similar ground as that of Kishtwar and Poonch i.e. the return of people from outside the Union Territory.
Even in the Orange Zone districts, a number of relaxations announced by the Union Home Ministry followed by the J&K Government, haven’t been implemented on the ground. According to sources, the administration was focused on return of stranded people of Jammu and Kashmir from different parts of the country. While 35,000 persons have already reached the UT from different States, more are expected in the coming week or 10 days when the Government proposed to run trains and buses to bring back the people.
This, sources said, was one of the reasons for the District Magistrates delaying relaxation in certain restrictions in lockdown in Orange and Green Zone districts of Jammu region.
Meanwhile, 35,000 stranded people of Jammu and Kashmir have reached the Union Territory from different States till this evening.
An official statement, however, put the figure during the day at 33,000.
“Return of stranded people picks up pace. Nearly 2800 arrived yesterday via Lakhanpur. Over 3000 students, labourers and others from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Haryana, Uttarakhand expected today. Total number of returnees now over 33,000. Thank you for all your patience and cooperation,” Government spokesman and Principal Secretary Planning, Development and Monitoring Department Rohit Kansal tweeted.
Deputy Commissioner Kathua OP Bhagat, however, tonight said the number of stranded people of J&K who have crossed Lakhanpur, the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir to enter the Union Territory, has touched 35,000 and there has been no let up in the influx.
Meanwhile, 465 persons were today released from different quarantine centres in Doda district after completion of 14-day quarantine after arrival from different parts of the country.
In the Union Territory of Ladakh, one more Corona patient was today treated and discharged from the hospital reducing number of active cases to 24 including 19 in Leh district and five in Kargil district.
Commissioner/Secretary Health Ladakh Rigzin Samphel told media persons in Leh that reports of 520 samples have been received and all of them were negative.
Samphel said Chushot Gongma has been removed from the list of Containment Zone as no new case has been reported from there since March 3.
Divisional Commissioner Ladakh Saugat Biswas said 112 students of Zanskar are being brought back from Jammu in dedicated buses following social distancing norms.
“They will undergo home quarantine for 14 days. We need to be patient among various limitations. Let’s focus on fighting COVID,” Biswas said in a tweet.
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