A day after testing positive for the novel coronavirus, a man in his 60s from Tangmarg, north Kashmir, died at Srinagar’s Chest and Disease hospital — a COVID-19 designated clinic — at about 4 pm. He became the second victim from the Valley.
Today, five more new positive cases were detected in Kashmir. Eleven days after confirming the first case of the novel coronavirus, the tally has risen in Jammu and Kashmir (J-K) to thirty-eight; twenty-nine in the Valley and rest in the Jammu division.
After the test of the Tangmarg resident came positive, “he was put on a ventilator yesterday evening,” says a doctor at the CD Hospital. “The patient was suffering from liver ailment.” Later in the evening, he was buried in his native village. Due to the strict guidelines, only five people were allowed to his funeral.
Last Thursday, a 65-year-old person from Hyderpora, Srinagar, died of the disease, making it the first case of death due to Coronavirus.
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Out of forty-five awaited reports, forty came negative. Of the five new cases reported today, youngest is a 17-year-old from Budgam, central Kashmir and eldest being a 29-year-old from Srinagar. The fifth one is said to be a government forces personnel posted in Srinagar, who is not a resident of Jammu and Kashmir, reported GNS. Meanwhile, the spokesperson of CRPF and of the army denied it.
Three of the patients had returned from New Delhi between 18 and 22 March while another man from Srinagar was part of Tablighi Jamaat and the how the transmission happened was not clear as of now.
Eighty-six reports are awaited at the CD hospital.
Thirty-one more persons with COVID-19 symptoms were admitted to SKIMS, Soura, today. Nodal officer for coronavirus control at SKIMS, Dr G H Yatoo said that all tests which were awaited came out to be negative.
Dr. Salim Khan, Nodal Officer for coronavirus for GMC Srinagar, said that seventy-eight persons with symptoms similar to COVID-19 were admitted at the CD hospital.
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Meanwhile, Rohit Kansal, the J-K government’s spokesperson, tweeted that a couple from Srinagar, who tested positive yesterday, hid their international travel history and such people are “putting the entire society at risk”. He called such behaviour “criminal”.
The government also informed that 6,465 travellers and persons in contact with suspected cases have been put under surveillance so far. As per the daily Media Bulletin on the novel coronavirus, 3,260 persons have been kept under home quarantine (including facilities operated by the government) while 307 are in hospital quarantine.
Persons who are under home surveillance stand at 2,163 while 735 persons have completed their 28-day surveillance period. It also added that 588 samples have been sent for testing of which 542 tested as negative. (With inputs from GNS)
