Srinagar, November 07:
Stringent restrictions may return to parts of Srinagar if the spurt in Covid cases in some pockets of the city is not contained, Srinagar deputy commissioner Mohammad Aijaz Asad said on Saturday.
A day after eight more containment zones were added in the city, Asad, along with other administrative and health officials, visited various parts of Srinagar and conducted flash Covid tests of people not following the pandemic-related protocols.
Asad said that he would not like to see Srinagar becoming the cause of the third Covid wave in the Valley.
“The Covid cases are increasing. There are certain places like Lal Bazaar where we have seen 18 cases in the past one week, 12 cases in Chanapora, 15 in Bemina and other pockets from where the infections are getting reported constantly,” Asad told the media during his tour.
He said that so far, the region has been saved from the third coronavirus wave. “I would not want an invitation to be given to the third wave. The limits on social functions and marriages should not be violated and I want to appeal to all to wear masks and avoid public places,” he said.
Of the 1,009 active coronavirus cases in Jammu and Kashmir till November 5, more than half are in Srinagar. This is the only district which is reporting 40 to 60 cases daily, around half of the 100-odd infections in the entire union territory.
Asad said that some three-four pockets of the city are under scanner from where cases are constantly rising.
“If there is no decline in cases from those pockets then we will have to impose more restrictions in a localised manner,” he said.
There are 82 containment zones in Srinagar, eight of which were added on Friday.
“Eight micro containment zones were declared yesterday and if cases are not controlled in these micro containment zones, then we will have to impose further restrictions,” he said.
On the criticism from people that the government itself was organising big gatherings and not following Covid-19 protocols in the city, the DC said that they were doing everything for the people.
“Government works for people and if we are on the road, some 10-15 people will be with me. There is no alternative to this. We are trying to control Covid. Wherever we think we need to take action, we do that,” he added.
“There may be some events which are held for the public which are necessary and the Covid protocols are kept in mind in those functions,” the DC said.
Although Jammu and Kashmir recorded its lowest Covid count in eight months in October, the union territory has been witnessing a slow and consistent rise in active cases over the past two weeks — majority of which is contributed by Srinagar.
The active cases in J&K had been on the decline, reaching its lowest ebb on October 20 with 800 cases. However after October 20, the active cases slowly went up and reached 1,009 on November 5, an increase of 26% in 16 days.
J&K reports highest daily Covid cases in 45 days
Jammu and Kashmir reported 151 Covid cases on Saturday, highest daily total in 45 days.
Of the total cases, 135 were reported in Kashmir valley with Srinagar, which is witnessing a spurt in cases, being responsible for 79 infections. The Jammu division saw 16 infections. On September 23, the UT had recorded 172 cases.
The number of patients who were cured in the UT was 69 with active positive cases reaching 1,091.
Officials said with 79 cases, Srinagar had the highest number of new infections followed by 14 cases in Baramulla and 12 cases in Budgam, with no or single-digit cases in the other 16 districts.
Srinagar has the highest number of active cases at 554 followed by Baramulla and Budgam districts with 160 and 85 such cases, respectively.
The government’s daily health bulletin also said that 81,729 vaccines were administered, taking the number of overall doses administered in the UT to 1.51 crore.
The overall number of people who have recovered reached 3,27,380, prompting the recovery rate to climb up to 98.35%. Since the pandemic started, the total cases in J&K have reached 3,32,911 and the death toll stood at 4,440.
The officials said that 41,649 tests were conducted in the past 24 hours in the UT.
The Jammu district has the highest number of 1,146 fatalities followed by Srinagar with 851 deaths.
(Courtesy Hindustan Times)
