COVID-19 scare: Kashmir continues to be under lockdown

Friday congregational prayers shortened in masjids

In a bid to contain the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), restrictions continued in Kashmir, which has recorded one positive case, on the second consecutive day on Friday.

Public and private transport in Srinagar city was taken off the roads while markets were shut on orders of the authorities. Police and paramilitary CRPF personnel were deployed and barricades, including concertina wires, put up at several places in Srinagar and other places to enforce the restrictions and curtail the movement of people.

Only government and essential services employees with valid identity cards, media-persons, and emergency cases were being allowed to move. The police used vehicles fitted with public address systems to announce the restrictions in the morning and asked the people to stay indoors and maintain social distancing.

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As a precautionary measure, shortened Friday congregational prayers and at some places, no congregations at all were witnessed in Kashmir. Two prominent religious organisations –Jamiat Ahlihadees and Shia Association – had decided to put on hold the mandatory Friday prayers across Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The steps were taken after a 67-year-old woman from the old city area of Khanyar in Srinagar, who had returned on March 16 from Saudi Arabia after performing Umrah (mini Hajj), tested positive for COVID-19.

As the infected person was not placed under any quarantine or isolation upon her return, the authorities had to seal off the entire neighbourhood of Khanyar falling within 300 metres radius of the affected woman’s residence.

Several relatives of the infected woman who had primary contact with her have been advised to undergo tests while others, who might have had secondary contact with the patient were asked to undergo self-isolation for two weeks.

Imtiaz Ismail Parray, an IPS officer whose mother-in-law became the first positive case of coronavirus in the Valley, said although he had no direct contact with her after her return from Saudi Arabia, he was still going into isolation.

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“Updating all well wishers…Mother in law doing well at SKIMS. Rest of my family also following necessary protocol..Although no direct contact was made yet I am also going into isolation…Urge all to leave nothing to chance and follow Govt directives strictly,” the SSP posted on Twitter.

Other family members of the woman including a lady doctor posted in Gynecology department of super-speciality SKIMS hospital in Srinagar have also been quarantined.

Meanwhile, a government spokesperson said that so-far 3330 travelers and persons in contact with suspected cases have been enlisted for observation while only four cases have tested positive in Jammu and Kashmir

“2465 persons have been kept under home quarantine while as 44 are in hospital quarantine. Persons who are under home surveillance stand at 416 while as 405 persons have completed their 28-day surveillance period,” he said.

186 samples have been sent for testing of which 178 tested as negative and only four cases have tested positive, so far while as four reports are awaited, he added.