Covid cases rise in India's Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar emerges as hotspot
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165 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, while three have succumbed to the deadly virus. Notably, this is the highest number of infections that have been recorded in the last six weeks
Jammu and Kashmir has been witnessing a sharp rise in the COVID-19 cases as 165 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, while three succumbed to the deadly virus.
Kashmir division has reported 147 cases, while Jammu had 18 new cases. Notably, this is the highest number of infections that have been recorded in the last six weeks.
Srinagar is emerging as one of the hotspots for the Covid spread, as about 554 out of 968 active cases (that is 57 per cent) have been reported so far.
“We have taken a lot of containment measures. We have created micro containment zones. There are five wards which are under corona curfew, these are: Lal Bazaar, Hyderpora, Chanapora, and Bemina. We have also mobilised our health staff for screen testing. We have also upped the speed of the vaccination drive in the region,” said Ajaz Asad, District Collector, Srinagar.
The medical staff fear that a further spike in the COVID cases could be expected as a huge influx of tourists is being witnessed in the state. They say that the current scale of testing capacity needs to be upgraded to test more tourists.
“'There is a standard protocol for any tourist visiting the valley. At the airport, either you require an RT-PCR test or on the spot the Rapid Antigen Test. I feel there is a good influx of tourists at the moment as all the hotels are booked, that’s why we want to control the Covid cases at the beginning. We are taking all the measures to curb the spread of infection. We overcame the first and second wave with the support of people, and we can again if people adhere to the Covid protocols,” Asad said.
The Jammu Kashmir Administration is currently doing more than 50,000 tests across the Union Territory daily.