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Abrar Reyaz with severe head injury was shifted from SMHS to Chest Diseases hospital, which does not even have a trauma ward, because ‘no bed was available’ at the other Covid hospital

By: Kashmir Reader

Srinagar: “What has a patient with head trauma injury got to do at a Chest Disease Hospital?”, questioned Sibtain Hyder, a youth from Srinagar as the news of the tragic death of Abrar Reyaz, a 24-year-old from Shopian district who was studying law in Srinagar, broke on social media Tuesday afternoon.

Abrar, who was pursuing LLB at Central University of Kashmir, met with an accident along with his father and uncle on the Srinagar-Jammu highway at Galandar on Saturday evening.

His uncle succumbed on the way to hospital while Abrar was shifted to SMHS Hospital in Srinagar with severe brain haemorrhage and immediately put on a ventilator.

He passed away on Tuesday afternoon at Chest Diseases Hospital Srinagar where he was shifted a day before, as the hospital authorities declared him a COVID-19 patient.

But Abrar’s close relatives have alleged that the test reports were swapped with another patient’s and Abrar had no COVID-19 infection.

A close relative said that Abrar had been unnecessarily shifted to CD Hospital based on a dubious report, and no consideration was given to his serious head injury.

He said that Abrar had been showing “Considerable Improvement” at SMHS Hospital and should have been treated there instead of being shifted to Chest Disease Hospital, which is an exclusive facility for patients with respiratory ailments.

The Chest Disease Hospital, one of Abrar’s friends said, does not even have a specialist doctor to treat trauma patients.

Raja Ishfaq Lateef, one of Abrar’s friends, accused the hospital authorities at SMHS Hospital of “Murder”.

“This is sheer negligence for which the doctors should be booked,” he said.

Principal of Government Medical College (GMC) Srinagar, Dr Samia Rashid, reasoned that they “Could not keep a COVID-19 positive patient with negative patients” at the hospital.

She said that Abrar’s Covid report came positive and they wanted to shift him to the Surgery Department at SKIMS Soura “but they did not have a bed”.

“Considering that he had tested COVID-19 positive, we shifted him to CD Hospital,” she said.

The GMC Principal also refuted allegations that Abrar’s Covid test report had been swapped or mixed with some other patient’s.

With inputs from Kashmir Reader

Srinagar: The Kashmir Valley on Wednesday recorded six deaths due to Novel Coronavirus, thus taking the overall death toll due to the virus to 107 in Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory, officials said.

Officials told news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) six patients who died today include 75-year-old man from Sopore, 80-year-old man from Bijbehara area of Anantnag district, 50-year-old lady from Srinagar, 50-year-old woman from Kupwara, 45-year-old man from Shangus area of Anantnag and 54-year-old man from Shama Chak area of Jammu.

Dr. Saleem Tak, Medical Superintendent CD hospital said that two patients one from Sopore and other from Bijbehara died at CD hospital, adding that they were suffering from Pneumonia besides respiratory diseases and other ailments.

He said that the patient from Sopore died during the intervening night of Tuesday-Wednesday while the other patient from Bijbehara died on Wednesday morning.

Dr G H Yatoo, Nodal Officer for COVID-19 at SKIMS told KNO that the lady from Eidgah Srinagar was admitted at SKIMS on June 19. “She was admitted as a case of Hypertension, Hypothyroidism with community acquired Pneumonia with type 1 respiratory failure,” he said.

One late evening, Yatoo added that two more positive cases including a 50-year-old woman from Kupwara, 45-year-old man from Shangus area of Anantnag died at SKIMS.

He said that the Kupwara woman was admitted on June 30 as a case of carcinoma of unknown origin with Right l/l dvt with anemia, adding that the patient died due to cardiopulmonary arrest.

About Shangus’ patient, he said the 45-year-old man was tested positive on June 28 and died today due to cardiopulmonary arrest.

Meanwhile, an official told KNO that a 54-year-old man from Shama Chak area of Jammu area died at Army hospital Udhampur in the evening.

With six more deaths, the death toll due to the COVID-19 has mounted to 107 in Jammu and Kashmir including 94 from Kashmir and 13 from Jammu division.

Srinagar district with 25 deaths has the highest fatalities followed by Baramulla (17), Kulgam (14), Shopian (12), Anantnag (9), seven each from Jammu and Budgam,  Kupwara (5), Pulwama (four) Udhampur (two) while one death each has been reported from Bandipora, Poonch, Doda, Rajouri and Kathua—(KNO)

India and China have now held three rounds of Corp Commander talks, but it’s now clear that the stand-off is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon. On Tuesday, Lieutenant General Harinder Singh and Major General Liu Lin held talks for almost eleven hours. Sources privy to the talks held at Chushul on the Indian said, that the Indian army is now preparing for a long haul, leading up to winter.

“Both sides have emphasised the need for an expeditious, phased and step wise de-escalation as a priority”, said a defence official. The official also said that more meetings are expected both at military and diplomatic levels to arrive at a mutually agreeable solution to ensure peace.

CNBC-TV18 has learnt that both sides discussed procedures and mechanisms for disengagement but so far there has been no reduction in troops at the LAC. During the talks, India raised Chinese transgressions specifically in Galwan, Gogra-Hot Springs and Pangong Tso areas. The Indian military officials also flagged Chinese troop concentration along the LAC, deployment of weapon systems and construction on the Chinese side. “Disengagement talks likely to be long-drawn, complex and tedious”, said official requesting anonymity.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to visit Ladakh on Friday to meet top commanders and review the situation along the Line of Actual Control.

“We have been operating in winters for many years, also in areas like Siachen which are more challenging. Even if we have to remain alert at the LAC in winters, the capacity, capability and the logistics exist”, said Lieutenant General DS Hooda, Former GOC-in-C for the Northern Command. Hooda also said there is hardly any possibility of a full-blown conflict but the prospects of a limited conflict cannot be ruled out.

While Indian defence forces are matching Chinese deployments at the LAC, the India-Pakistan border is witnessing a massive rise in ceasefire violations too. More than 2100 ceasefire violations have already been reported at the LOC this year compared to 3200 in 2019. There have been 5-6 terrorist infiltration attempts in May and the Indian army has carried out 24 counter-terror operations in the last one month.

With inputs from CNBC-TV18

Srinagar: Former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah Wednesday lambasted forces personnel for filming the misery of a 3-year old toddler who lost his grandfather in Sopore shootout and termed it “propaganda”.

According to Kashmir News Service (KNS), the video and photographs of toddler wailing on the body of his grandfather went viral on social media who had received bullets.

Meanwhile former CM of J&K Omar Abdullah while taking to micro-blogging site Twitter termed it “propaganda tool” in Kashmir. He also lambasted “men in uniform” for filming the inconsolably crying child.

Taking to Twitter Omar wrote, “Everything becomes a propaganda tool in the bloody violence in Kashmir. A three year old toddler has to have his misery broadcast to the whole world to drive home the “we good they bad” message. We would have got the point without his misery being filmed & shared so please don’t”.

“We would have expected no less from the men in uniform than to rescue the young boy & for that they have our gratitude but we would expect better than for them to film & use a three year old’s pain the way it’s being done today”, he added. (KNS)

Srinagar: Ministry of Home Affairs has directed that all educational institutions shall remain closed across India till July 31.

The MHA has issued directives at a time when various universities in Kashmir including University of Kashmir have directed employees to attend duties amid COVID-19 lockdown.

“MHA has issued guidelines, whereby it has been directed that colleges and educational institutions will remain closed till 31.07.2020. It has been further stated that online/distance learning shall continue to be permitted and shall be encouraged,” the MHA said in its order issued on June 30, a copy of which lies with news agency Kashmir Indepth News Service (KINS).

“In order to ensure the safety of the faculty members/ teachers/ researchers/ non-teaching staff of higher educational institutions should be permitted and advised to work from home till 31.07.2020,” it reads.

The MHA said the period shall be counted as being on duty for all staff members including Ad-hoc and contract teachers, whose contracts are valid at least up-to 31.07.2020.

At the same time, staff members in various varsities, colleges in Kashmir have been directed to attend their duties.

The University of Kashmir has issued a notification directing all the Deans, Heads, Directors, Coordinators, Officers of School, Examination wing to ensure 100% attendance of the staff. Besides, research scholars have also been asked to report to the university and complete their assignments.

“We fail to understand when all educational institutions are closed then why are we being forced to come to university which will pose a serious threat to all employees,” an assistant professor of University of Kashmir told KINS.

Around 3000 teaching and non-teaching employees are working on Kashmir University’s main campus. Further, around 1000 research scholars are currently enrolled in the varsity.
Registrar University of Kashmir, Professor Nisar Ahmad Mir said they have to follow directives of the J & K government.

“If MHA has issued any directives, J&K government will also issue its guidelines and we will follow them accordingly,” Mir told KINS.
At least four employees of Kashmir University have tested positive for coronavirus so far.

An official of Central University Kashmir said they are also being forced to attend duties. “Traffic is off the roads and coronavirus cases are on the rise. Despite that we are being asked to attend duties,” an official of CUK said.

A senior official of CUK however said they will follow MHA directives.(KINS)

Srinagar: Parents of Private Schools Association Wednesday urged all the parents not to pay fees till final decision from the government comes. The Association asked the parents of students studying in private schools to wait for the decision of the government as no final decision has some from the government.

Convener, Parents of Private Schools Association, Mohsin Goni told news agency KNT that Private School owners have capitalist mindset and they simply want to suck the blood of parents. “What is the justification of these schools to grab fee from the parents, when there were no economic as well as academic activities during the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said and requested the government to direct the private schools for waiver of fees.

He said that both the associations of private schools were brought under one roof and they agreed to waive the fees of distressed parents. “These owners of private schools backtracked from the promise they had made with us and started demanding fee from all. Now it is our request to parents not to pay fee till the government takes a final call,” Goni said.

He said that government should take parents into confidence before taking any final decision. “Government should understand that parents are facing worst economic problems and they can’t afford fee this time,” he said.

“The salaries of the staff are always taken up by the schools as a tactic to emotionally blackmail the government and parents as well. We ask the government that if the parents have been cooperating with the schools since August 2019 by paying full fee, why the schools this time can’t waive off the fee for the pandemic period,” Goni told KNT.

New Delhi: Pakistan has moved two divisions of troops along the LoC in occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan and Chinese officials are holding talks with cadres of terrorist outfit Al Badr to incite violence in J&K, as per intelligence inputs, indicating clearer signs of a China-Pak collaboration on the border.

Pakistan has moved almost 20,000 additional soldiers to LoC to match Chinese deployments on the LAC in the east. The level of troops Pakistan has deployed is more than what it did after the Balakot air strikes. Pakistani radars are believed to be fully activated all along the region too.

The simultaneous build up on the Pakistan and China borders and efforts to incite terrorism in Kashmir has brought the possibility of a two-front war and fighting terrorists in Kashmir, the worst case scenario strategic experts fear, closer to reality.

Sources said there have been a series of meetings between Chinese and Pakistani officials in recent weeks, followed by amassing of troops in Gilgit-Baltistan, the area that adjoins Ladakh on the north. The buildup comes at a time when thousands of Chinese soldiers have been aggressively deployed along LAC in eastern Ladakh, apart from intrusions at several points that has led to a tense standoff.

A build up in Gilgit-Baltistan would require additional responsibility for the Indian Army that has deployed a credible force in eastern Ladakh to counter China. After the bifurcation of J&K , Gilgit-Baltistan is part of the Union Territory of Ladakh, but occupied by Pakistan. The area adjoins Kargil-Drass where India fought a war to evacuate Pakistani intruders in 1999.

According to intelligence reports, Chinese officials have undertaken meetings with cadres of the Al Badr, a Pakistan-based terror group that has a history of wreaking violence in Kashmir. “The assessment is that China may provide support to revive the organisation. This is among the signs we have received that indicate Pakistan and China are collaborating on the ground,” sources said.

Earlier this month, J&K Police DG Dilbag Singh had said there were signs that the Al Badr, decimated long ago, was being revived for operations. These signs of collaboration are worrying as tensions continue on LAC, with talks failing to make any headway and PLA increasing concentration across eastern Ladakh, apart from Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Sikkim.

As first reported by ET, India has been keeping an eye on airbases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir after a Chinese refueller aircraft landed in Skardu earlier this week. Chinese air activity has increased opposite eastern Ladakh, raising the possibility of PLA Air Force (PLAAF) using airbases in Gilgit-Baltistan. Limited activity is being observed at the Skardu airbase where an IL 78 tanker of the Chinese air force landed earlier in the month.

With input from ET Bureau

PTI

Jammu: The police on Wednesday rescued a 17-year-old girl who was allegedly abducted a week ago and arrested the accused from Jammu, officials said.

The girl was allegedly abducted by a man, identified as named Amit Kumar (21), from Purkhoo and a case under section 363 of the Indian Penal Code was registered at Kanachak Police Station on the complaint of her father on June 24, a police official said.

Police teams raided various places over the past week and finally rescued the girl from a house on the outskirts of Jammu early on Wednesday morning.

The accused was also arrested and further investigation is underway, the official said.