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Fatalities Include Bank Manager, 28-Year-Old Woman, BSF Trooper

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday reported twelve more deaths attributed to covid-19 including a 5-year-old child from Bandipora and a 28-year-old young woman from Kulgam district. With these deaths, the fatality count due to the virus has risen to 278—258 in Kashmir Valley and 20 in Jammu division.

Five deaths occurred at SKIMS Soura, as many at SMHS hospital including BSF trooper posted in Baramulla while one each was reported at CD hospital and SKIMS Bemina here, official sources told GNS.

They said that the child, a resident of Qazipora Bandipora, died at SKIMS Soura, a week after he tested positive for covid-19. The minor had about 90 burn injuries, they said.

Regarding the young woman from Qazigund Kulgam, they said, she was admitted to SKIMS Bemina on July 14 had various underlying ailments including diabetes mellitus.

“The woman was shifted to ICU on July 20 and today at 9:15 a.m. she was intubated but at 12:05p.m. She developed sudden cardiac arrest and was declared dead at 1:15 p.m.,” they said.

The other casualties include a bank manager, in 50s, from Batamaloo who died at SKIMS Soura, a 45-year-old from Shahgund village of Bandipora, presently at Zoonimar, who was declared brought dead on arrival by the doctors at CD hospital, his age-mate male from Palpora who passed away at SMHS hospital, a 70-year-old male from Ganderbal, a 54-year-old man from Sonawar Srinagar, 58-year-old from Rajbagh Srinagar, a 45-year-old from Khanyar Srinagar who was suffering from diabetes, hypertension and bilateral pneumonia, a male, in 50s, from Umarhair Srinagar who died at SKIMS Soura and 56-year-old woman from Pulwama.

Regarding the quinquagenarian from Pulwama, they said, she was resident of Pathan. She was admitted to SMHS hospital on July 21 and died today. “she was a cancer patient suffering for Myelodysplastic syndrome” they added.

Regarding 45-year-old from Shahgund Bandipora, they said, he was declared brought dead on arrival by the doctors at CD hospital, one of the exclusive facilities for the management of the covid-19 patients here, late last night. “The patient was declared covid-19 positive and was brought to CD hospital late last night. However the doctors who attended upon him declared him dead on arrival,” they said.

Regarding the 45-year-old male from Palpora who was diagnosed of having community acquired pneumonia among other ailments died at SMHS hospital, a senior doctor there told GNS.

Regarding the quinquagenarian from Rajbagh, they said, he was admitted on July 16 and tested positive subsequently.

Regarding septuagenarian from Ganderbal, they said, he was admitted on July 20 and died last night at SMHS. “He was suffering from bilateral pneumonia and had tested positive posthumously.”

As regards the 54-year-old man from Sonwar Srinagar, they said he was admitted on July 14. Regarding the BSF trooper, they said, he was from 40 battalion and admitted to SMHS hospital of July 20. “he died today,” they added.

With these deaths, 258 people in Kashmir and 20 in Jammu have died so far due to the covid-19.

Srinagar district with 74 deaths has the highest fatalities followed by Baramulla (58), Kulgam (26), 19 each in Shopian and Anantnag, Budgam (20), fifteen each in Pulwama and Kupwara, Jammu(12), Bandipora (7), Ganderbal (5), two each in Rajouri and Doda and one each in Poonch, Udhampur, and Kathua. (GNS)

Kulgam: Suspected militants shot dead an Ikhwani turned policeman in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district this late evening.

Sources told News Agency KNT that suspected militants emerged outside the house of one Abdul Rashid Dar son of Ghulam Hasan alias Khurshid Alam in Fura village of the district and fired upon Dar before escaping from the spot.

Dar was shifted to hospital where doctors declared him brought dead.

Dar according to local sources was a renegade before joining police. He had also been the security guard of a top rank police officer.

No arrests were made during the cordon and search operation that followed after the incident, reports said. (KNT)

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir unit of Shiv Sena on Wednesday slammed the UT administration for cancelling Amarnath Yatra at the last moment stating that when tourist destinations can be thrown open in the Union Territory why the yatra has been cancelled.

Talking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) J&K Shiv Sena president, Manish Sahni said that the UT administration has misled the devotees by cancelling the annual yatra at the last minute and wasted a huge amount of money spent in its preparation.

He said that the cancellation of the yatra at the last minute proves the weakness and confusion in the decision made by Jammu and Kashmir administration.

Sahni said that earlier it was decided to allow the first batch on 21 July but the sudden decision was taken to cancel the yatra on the same day which is a loophole of the administration.

He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier had advised us to learn to live with this virus when the Jammu and Kashmir administration has also issued directions to open tourist destinations but religious journey is not being allowed which is disappointing.

Sahni appealed to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir to issue timely guidelines regarding forthcoming Eid.

Meanwhile, he welcomed the decision of showing the “Darshan” and “Aarti” from the holy Amarnath cave virtually—(KNO)

‘Trucks entering Lakhanpur provided vehicular pass, truck terminals at Lakhanpur are functional round-the-clock’

Srinagar: The government on Wednesday said that over two lakh trucks carrying essential supplies have entered Jammu and Kashmir since the lockdown was imposed in March this year.

State Project Director, Samagra Shiksha, Department of School Education, Arun Manhas, who has been deployed at Lakhanpur for management of supply of essentials, said that a total of 2,01,472 trucks carrying essential supplies entered Jammu and Kashmir since lockdown was imposed in wake of deadly Coronavirus outbreak.

While talking to KNO, Manhas said that in an average, over two thousand trucks carrying essentials are arriving Jammu and Kashmir on daily basis. He said that the number of trucks arriving J&K has gone up from the initial days of lockdown.

Sharing details on his personal twitter handle, Manhas added that 17 per cent of trucks among them were carrying ration and food grains, adding that 18 per cent of trucks that entered J&K were carrying fruits and vegetables.

According to State Project Manager, ten per cent of trucks were carrying construction material while as the five per cent trucks were carrying cattle feed and fodder. “17 and 15 per cent trucks were carrying other essentials and non-essential supplies,” he said, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO)

The data he shared mentioned that six per cent of trucks were carrying poultry, sheep and eggs while five per cent trucks were carrying raw material. It added that three per cent trucks were carrying medicines while one per cent trucks were carrying milk.

It also added that one per cent trucks were carrying petroleum and Oil lubricants and two per cent trucks were carrying LPG.

In a tweet, Manhas said that every truck entering Lakhanpur is provided vehicular pass, saying that the truck terminals in Lakhanpur are functional round-the-clock.

“Total trucks carrying essential supplies into J&K since lockdown crosses 2 lacs mark. Every truck while crossing Lakhanpur is provided vehicular pass.Truck terminals in Lakhanpur are functional in Lakhanpur 24*7 since lockdown,” he tweeted.

“The upswing in flow of trucks into J&K carrying construction material and industrial raw material shows the normalisation of construction and economic activities in J& K,” he tweeted—(KNO)

Srinagar: A Division Bench Wednesday dismissing a plea challenging extension in services of incumbent Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Baseer Ahmed Khan terming it in-fructuous.

A Division Bench of the State High Court comprising Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Sanjay Dhar through video conferencing after hearing Advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed through virtual mode taking note of the submissions made by Advocate S.S. Ahmed directed that the instant application having been rendered in-fructuous is hereby dismissed.

When this matter came up for hearing through virtual mode Advocate S.S. Ahmed according to news agency KNT invited the attention of the Division Bench to a PIL wherein the petitioners challenged order vide number 26014/1/2019-AIS-II dated June, 30, 2019 whereby Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Department of Personnel and Training, Government of India accorded approval to the extension in service of Baseer Ahmed Khan (IAS) as Divisional Commissioner Kashmir for a period of one year as a special case beyond the date of his superannuation.

Advocate S.S. Ahmed submitted that this application has been rendered infructuous with the efflux of time as Baseer Ahmed Khan (IAS) has further been appointed and elevated to the post of Advisor to the Lieutenant Governor Jammu and Kashmir and the cause projected in the instant application does not serve any purpose.

The Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Gita Mittal taking note of the submissions made by Advocate S.S. Ahmed directed that the instant application having been rendered infructuous is hereby dismissed.

The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by social activist Sheikh Muhammad Shafi (KNT)

Srinagar: The district administration in Srinagar on Wednesday said that the migrant workers would be allowed to enter the city after testing negative for COVID-19, officials said.

The administration also issued guidelines and appointed nodal officer for the regulated entry of non-local labourers.

“It has been decided that Rapid Antigen Testing/ RT-PCR (Real Time Polymerize Chain Reaction) shall be done on arrival in districts. The scheme has been notified keeping in view the large workforce of brick kilns. There are no brick kilns operating in District Srinagar however labor for construction activities and infrastructure projects has been reported to be arriving in some cases.

Further, there is also need to have in place strict arrangements to ensure that all required protocols are followed to avoid spread of COVID,” said a spokesman.

He said the Department of Labour and Employment shall be Nodal Department for ensuring end to end arrangements for incoming Labour to ensure their regulated entry, compulsory COVID testing, distancing norms and SOPs at places of work and stay.

Deputy Labour Commissioner shall personally oversee the arrangements and personally monitor the process. He shall be designated officer under The Disaster Management Act 2005, for the said purpose.

Asstt Labour Commissioner, Srinagar shall remain stationed at Pantha-chowk to coordinate entry Labour and compulsory testing at designated camp and further SOPs to be adopted at places of work and stay. Each worker/ labourer shall be given a unique ID number by Labor Department to ensure his tracking and surveillance, compulsorily indicating mobile number and other particulars. Any lapse in management shall be personal responsibility of concerned officers.

The Deputy Labor Commissioner / Asstt Labor Commissioner shall establish a Control Room at Panthachowk for overall coordination. The control room shall have representatives from all the departments deputed already at disposal of Tehsildar Panthachowk. They shall coordinate with Lakhanpur and JT teams and ensure that no entry is allowed beyond the manifest received.
The following guidelines shall be implemented without any relaxation, by Deputy / Asstt Labor Commissioner, and they shall be personally responsible in case any laborer/ worker is found in city in violation of these.

Mandatory Rapid Antigen Testing/ RT-PCR,Unique ID for each person,Wearing mask all the times,Social distancing at places of stay,Social distancing at places of work,Complete database of places of stay and work,Contact numbers/ address details of labor contractors,Daily reporting on arrival,Database of labour,Installation of Aarogya Setu.

Any vehicles found ferrying laborers without permission shall be seized, imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 and shall not be released till the cost of Rapid Antigens Testing/ RT-PCR and other logistics is recovered from owner of vehicle/contractor.

Likewise, the labour contractors shall be booked for any violation of norms at places of work or stay. A fine of Rs 50,000 shall be imposed on contractor for violation of norms. All the costs including testing, logistics etc shall be recovered from the contractor wherever unauthorized movement of labor is found.

Labor Deptt shall communicate to all Tehsildars the details of places of work and places of stay of labor for strict monitoring and regular inspections. Further, directions shall be issued separately.

This order is issued under The Disaster Management Act and The Epidemic Diseases Act. Any violation thereof shall be dealt under provisions of the said Act.(KINS)

SRINAGAR: Amid surge in coronavirus cases, Srinagar is the worst district across Jammu and Kashmir where 3283 positive cases were detected until Tuesday.

As per the official figures accessed by news agency Kashmir Indepth News Service (KINS), 15258 positive cases have been reported from Jammu and Kashmir till Tuesday of which 6540 are active positive and 8455 have recovered. Jammu and Kashmir has also reported around 270 deaths by the deadly virus.

As per the figures, Srinagar has 3283 positive cases with 1961 active positive, 1253 recovered, 69 deaths until Tuesday.

A doctor at SMHS Hospital said Srinagar has become a major concern for the administration due to the huge number of COVID-19 positive cases.

“Highest numbers of deaths have also been reported from this district. There is hardly any area in Srinagar where positive cases have not been reported. It seems a difficult job for the administration to contain the virus in Srinagar,” the doctor told KINS.

In comparison, Jammu district has reported 651 positive cases with 199 active positive cases and 440 recoveries.

Similarly, Bandipora has 478 positive cases with 121 active positive, 352 recovered. Similarly, Anantnag district has 1097 positive cases with 363 active positive, 716 recovered. Baramulla has 1651 positive cases with 674 active positive, 922 recovered. Shopian has 1168 positive cases with 365 active positive, 784 recovered.

Kupwara has 965 positive cases with 362 active positive, 588 recovered. While Budgam has 948 positive cases with 449 active positive and 480 recovered cases. Ganderbal has 307 positive cases with 177 active positive cases and 126 recoveries. Kulgam has 1186 positive cases with 297 active positive and 864 recoveries. Pulwama reported 1042 positive cases with 494 active positive cases and 534 recovered.

Government has already issued an advisory that the best way to protect themselves from COVID-19 is by maintaining physical distance of at least 2 metre from others, frequently cleaning hands with an alcohol based hand sanitizer or washing them with soap and water and following good respiratory etiquette and hygiene.

As a measure for social distancing in public places and workplaces wearing a face cover is compulsory.

The advisory explained that early detection of COVID-19 can prevent the spread of disease so we need to be responsible for the well-being of ourselves and everyone around us. “Not disclosing symptoms could put life of individuals and their families at risk. In case of symptoms like fever, cough and difficulty in breathing report early. Do not fear, call COVID-19 helpline numbers and seek medical advice”.

Advisory has further exhorted upon the people not to step out of home, unless absolutely necessary. “If you have to move out for unavoidable reasons, ensure that you wear a mask and practice social distancing, personal hygiene and frequent handwashing with soap and water.”

In case of any emergency people can avail free ambulance services 24×7 at their doorsteps by calling on toll-free number 108 while as pregnant women and sick infants can avail free ambulance services by dialling toll-free number 102.(KINS)

Srinagar: Eight more patients including a five-year-old boy who were tested positive for COVID-19 died on Wednesday, thus taking the toll of deaths due to the virus to 275 in Jammu and Kashmir.

Officials told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that eight patients who died include a 58-year-old man from Rajbagh Srinagar, a 45-year-old man from Zoonimar Srinagar, a 45-year-old man from Palpora Noor Bagh Srinagar, a male patient from Khanyar Srinagar, a 70-year-old male from Ganderbal, a 29-year-old woman from Qazigund Anantnag, a 54-year old man from Sonwar Srinagar and a five-year-old kid from Qazipora Bandipora.

An official from SKIMS said that a patient from Rajbagh was admitted on July 16 with chest infection and tested positive for COVID-19, died on Wednesday morning.

Official sources said the patient was a ward officer in Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and had worked as a frontline worker in last three months in the area to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

An official from SKIMS added that two more patients including a 54-year-old man from Sonwar Srinagar who was admitted on July 14 and a five-year old boy from Qazipora Bandipora who was admitted on June 20 died at SKIMS on Wednesday afternoon. 

He said that boy had burn injuries and was tested positive for COVID-19 on 16 July.

An official from CD hospital said that a patient from Shah Gund Hajin, at present living in Zoonimar area of Srinagar, who was tested positive for COVID-19 was brought dead to CD hospital.

He said the patient was already critical, was suffering from lung cancer and was tested positive on Tuesday evening.

An official from SKIMS Bemina told KNO that a 29-year-old woman who was tested positive for COVID-19 died on Wednesday. 

An official from SMHS said that a 45-year-old man from Palpora Srinagar who was admitted on July 20 with bilateral pneumonia, died on Wednesday.

He further added that a male patient from Khanyar Srinagar who was admitted on July 21 died on Wednesday. He was suffering from Diabetes, hypertension, bilateral pneumonia and was tested positive after his death, he said.

A 70-year-old man from Ganderbal who was admitted on July 20 died on 21 July at SMHS, official said, adding that he was suffering from bilateral pneumonia and was tested positive a day after his death.

With eight more deaths, the death toll due to COVID-19 has reached to 275 in Jammu and Kashmir including 255 from Kashmir division and 20 from Jammu division—(KNO)