Srinagar: The surge in the number of COVID-19 patients in Kashmir has sent alarm bells ringing across Kashmir. The worst fear that the virus may have spread within the community seems to have come true.
Since the day the drive to combat the COVID-19 has started in Kashmir, authorities have been appealing the people to come forward and disclose their travel histories but still many people are in a hiding.
The COVID-19 claiming the second life in Kashmir has created panic as the 65-year old victim from north Kashmir’s Tangmarg area had no travel history. “It seems that the worst fears about the COVID-19 spreading into the community have come true,” said an observer.
He said, “Had the people disclosed their travel histories on time this chain could have been broken. Now we don’t know how many more have been affected by this deadly virus.”
Reports suggest that there could be many more positive cases across Kashmir and next few days are very crucial.
The Jammu and Kashmir government on Sunday said that concealing travel history is a crime. “Contact tracing teams reporting that despite so many appeals people still hiding travel histories. Couple which tested positive in Srinagar yesterday hid international travel history. This is criminal. Please note- an entire society is being put at risk,” The J&K UT spokesman Rohit Kansal wrote on the twitter.
The Divisional commissioner Kashmir Pandurang Kondbarao Pole once again appealed to the people, who have returned from foreign countries and have not disclosed their travel history, to come forward and register their names so that they could be quarantined well in time. “Those hiding their travel history should come forward within 2-days. If after two days, anybody is found hiding his/her travel history he/she will be dealt with sternly,” a local news agency quoted Divisional Commissioner as having said.
A senior official while talking to Precious Kashmir said, “People need to understand that they have not committed any crime by visiting any other State or the country. The administration wants to help them by getting them tested and sending them for quarantine. It’s just a matter of 14-days. After that they can once again mingle with the people.”
He said, “People of Kashmir should learn from Ladakhis. Soon after the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ladakh, everyone who had a travel history came forward and got himself tested. In the past 10-day not a single case has been found positive. Ladakh to a great extent has succeeded in flattening the Coronavirus curve.”
“Even in Jammu region, things are better than Kashmir. By hiding our travel histories we are doing a big disservice to our people and the society,” the official added.
