Srinagar: People hiding their travel histories is turning out to be a big challenge to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Kashmir.
There are reports that authorities have traced more than 450 people who hid their travel history to the countries which were hit by the COVID-19 outbreak.
An analyst while talking to Precious Kashmir said, “The people who are hiding their travel history need not be scared. They have committed no sin by travelling to some other country. They need to disclose their travel histories and come forward to get themselves tested. It’s just a matter of one simple test and 14-day quarantine period after that they can carry on with their daily chores without any fear.”
He said, “By hiding their travel histories these people are doing a big disservice as they are putting the lives of others at risk. If anyone of them is positive, he puts at risk the people whom he or she meets. This forms the chain and leads to others too becoming the victims.”
According to the media reports the three persons, who tested positive in Kashmir on Tuesday had not revealed their travel histories. “Now the people whom they have met during all these days are being traced so that they can be tested and sent into quarantine,” the analyst added.
It’s in place to mention here that four contacts of the person, who had tested positive for COVID-19 in Srinagar on Tuesday, also tested positive on Wednesday. This has taken the number of positive cases in Kashmir to eight.
“From one positive case number has jumped to eight within one day. Alarm bells are ringing we need to hear these,” the analyst said.
A doctor wishing anonymity said, “It appears that this virus has already spread into the community. But in Kashmir people are immune to such viruses as these are already present in the Valley due to the cold conditions. There is no doubt about the fact that we are facing a tough time and challenge ahead could be difficult to tackle, but if we set our basic rights, I think Kashmir will be able to fight COVID-19. People hiding their travel histories can lead to a catastrophe. They have to come forward to save the lives of others.”
An observer said, “It’s unfortunate that despite authorities taking stern steps to keep people away from each other, many of us are not trying to understand how bad the situation is and how ugly it can turn in coming days. Social distancing is the key and we cannot ignore it. We need to wake up before it’s too late. There are no vaccines and medicines to tackle this deadly virus. The only remedy available with us is to lock ourselves within our homes to prevent Coronavirus from hitting us hard. If we don’t mend our ways then no one can help us.”
