Image Source: TRIBUNE

Jammu and Kashmir continued to witness a spike in the number of persons infected from coronavirus as it reported 11 fresh cases on Monday, including a doctor of Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu, taking the total tally to 49. “11 new positive cases have been reported today— three from Jammu division and eight from Kashmir division. Now, there are a total of 49 positive cases, including 45 active, two recovered and two deaths,” Rohit Kansal, the government spokesperson, said. Official sources said a doctor at microbiology lab of GMC Jammu, which has been dedicated as Covid hospital for the entire Jammu region, also tested positive. The doctor has been isolated while the samples of other staff at the lab have been taken. “Another person from Bhawani Nagar in Janipura area of Jammu city also tested positive today while a person in Udhampur district was also confirmed to be infected with coronavirus,” sources said. Also, eight persons were found positive in Kashmir valley. Tests of four persons were found positive at Chest Disease Hospital and four at SKIMS, government spokesperson Kansal said. Officials said three infected persons belong to Srinagar, two each from Shopian and Budgam, and one from Bandipora districts. They said most of them had history of travel outside J&K. Authorities also announced that the first Covid positive case of Kashmir, a woman from old city Srinagar, had recovered from the infection after her tests were found negative. Meanwhile, keeping in view the sensitivity of the situation, the Jammu district administration today intensified containment operations in four major localities of Jammu, after the fresh cases were traced. The entry and exit points of these localities were restricted completely. “In order to strengthen the Covid containment operations in some areas of police station Trikuta Nagar (from where recent positive cases have been traced), we have intensified the lockdown in Bhatindi and neighbouring areas. We are further doing it today in Bhawani Nagar area of Janipur police station as well. This is in the interest of public at large,” Sushma Chauhan, District Magistrate, Jammu, said.
Meanwhile, the government expedited the screening and sanitisation of trucks carrying essential supplies at Lakhanpur — the gateway of Jammu and Kashmir — to replenish the exhausting stock of food grain in the UT. Earlier, the Punjab Hovernment had stopped the movement of trucks towards Jammu and Kashmir in view of the ongoing lockdown.

Taking stringent measures

1. The government has widened its surveillance of the suspected persons and more than 5,000 were brought under observation in the past 24 hours.
2. According to official statistics, as many as 11,644 travellers and persons in contact with suspected or positive cases were under observation across the UT while this number was just 6,465 on Sunday.
3. It said there were 355 persons in hospital isolation and hospital quarantine while 722 samples had been sent for testing out of which 659 tested negative. The reports in 15 cases were awaited.