Srinagar: Directorate of Health Services Kashmir has issued an advisory for the prevention of Mucormycosis (Black Fungus) after such cases were reported in Covid-19 patients in many parts of India.

“Better control of the sugar levels during COVID with or without steroids. Judicious use of steroids observing correct timing, correct dose and correct duration,” the advisory said.

It said there should be judicious use of antibiotics or antifungal. “To use clean, sterile water for humidifiers during the oxygen therapy, use distilled or sterile water, never use unboiled tap water or mineral water,” it said.

“Fill up to 10 mm below the maximum fill line, check the water level twice daily and top it up as necessary. Ensure that once a week all the components of the humidifier should be soaked in a mild antiseptic solution for 30 minutes, rinsed with clean water and dried in air,” the advisory said.

As such, All Chief Medical Officers/ Medical Superintendents/ Block Medical Officers and administrators of private hospitals are hereby directed to adhere to the above said guidelines strictly in order to prevent Mucormycosis.

Furthermore, Chief Medical officers are directed to ensure that the safety of steroids by retail medical shop owners is regulated and dispensed only under a valid medical prescription.

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Tuesday accorded sanction to constitution of a ten-member committee to formulate an action plan for tackling a possible third wave of COVID-19 in the Union Territory.

The committee according to an order under number 446-JK(GAD) of 2021, issued by the Commissioner/Secretary to the Government, Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, is headed by Dr. M.S. Khuroo, former Director, SKIMS Soura Srinagar.

According to the order, Dr. Shakti Gupta, Executive Director and CEO AIIMS Jammu was appointed as Co-Chairman of the committee.

The order reads that sanction is hereby accorded to the constitution of a Committee, comprising ten members, for formulating an action plan for tackling a possible third wave of COVID-19 in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The eight members of the committee include Dr. A.G. Ahangar, Director SKIMS Soura, Srinagar, Dr. Samia Rashid, Principal GMC Srinagar, Dr. Yashpal Sharma, Director (Coordination), New Member Medical Colleges, J&K and Managing Director, JKMSCL, Dr. Yasin Choudhary, Mission Director NHM, J&K, Dr. Saleem, Head of the Department PSM, GMC Srinagar, Dr. Muzaffer Jan, Head of the Department Member Pediatrics, GMC Srinagar, Dr. Rahul Gupta, Head of the Department, Chest Member Diseases, GMC Jammu and Dr. Khalid, Sr. Resident Administrator, Department Member of Hospital Administration, AIIMS, Delhi.

The committee has been tasked to prepare an action plan for tackling a possible third wave of COVID-19 pandemic in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir while special focus will be laid on preparedness in terms of creation of health infrastructure, enhancement in testing capacities, treatment protocols, arrangement of essential drugs/logistics, Machinery and Equipments, oxygen supply, manpower, etc.

It will also focus on ramping up COVID hospital beds and Critical Care Units especially for Pediatrics/Neo-natal age group, which is likely to be affected more.

Besides, the committee has been asked to strengthen Healthcare and COVID Care facilities in the rural areas of the Union Territory and also devise additional COVID Care facilities in the rural areas of J&K. (KNO)

Poor response to tenders floated by PMU of WB project

Srinagar: The much-talked about hydro-meteorological action plan for Kashmir has hit a roadblock due to poor response to tenders floated by the Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) for procurement of equipment for the mega project.

Under the World Bank financed project, the Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) proposed to set-up integrated operational forecasting system for hydro-meteorological hazards like flood and drought in Kashmir.

The ERA is Project Monitoring Unit (PMU) for stproject unveiled by the World Bank in 2015 for reconstruction of infrastructure hit by the devastating deluge of 2014 and strengthening J&K’s disaster management mechanism.

As part of the plan, the PMU planned to install 11 automatic water level recorder stations(AWLRS) on river Jhelum and 23 on its tributaries.

The programme also envisaged installation of 13 automatic rain gauges in various catchment areas of the river for recording and communicating the real-time rainfall data.

It also proposed to set-up 20 acoustic doppler profilers to record and communicate the real time discharge of Jhelum at nine stations and of tributaries at 11 stations.

According to officials, J&K ERA floated tenders for supply, installation and commissioning of equipment for the project, but it got poor response.

“The tender issued by PMU JTFRP for implementation of hydrometrological action plan received response from a single firm. Since the said firm was found to be technically non-responsive, the tender hereby stands,” read documents accessed by The Precious Kashmir.

It is worthwhile to mention that the WB sanctioned Rs 1500 crore for reconstruction of infrastructure hit by 2014 floods and strengthening State’s disaster management capabilities.

After the floods, a team of WB visited the affected areas of the State between February 1-6, 2015, to carry out a multi-sectoral assessment report of the damages and needs. The project was to be completed by June 2020 but the World Bank extended its deadline by one year on request of PMU. The J&K has again approached the Union Finance Ministry and World Bank for extending the deadline of the project to June 2022.

By: Bhat Imran

Srinagar: While the schools in most of the parts of Jammu and Kashmir remain closed for over two months during winters, authorities have kept more than 25 percent of government schools out of bounds for all weather roads.

The figures available revealed that among the total number of government schools of Jammu and Kashmir, only 74.4 percent were accessible in terms of all-weather roads during the academic year 2018-19.

The figures reveal that during this academic year, there were more than 24,000 government-run-schools functional in the erstwhile state.

However, among the total number of schools, only 17,916 schools were accessible by all-weather roads. “At least 6164 government-run-educational institutes were inaccessible,” states the official figures.

Officials of the School Education Department wishing anonymity said that the schools that are not road-friendly for all weather are mainly from remote areas.

“The schools having road connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir are mainly from the remote and hilly areas and remain covered with snow even after the month of February,” the official said.

Meanwhile, parents of those wards studying in government schools said that most of the public schools in Jammu and Kashmir are also lacking basic infrastructure like Information and Communication Technology (ICT) labs and computer classrooms besides the road connectivity.

One of the parents said, “In every government-school, there should have been computer labs and other facilities like private schools so that our wards will be able to compete and excel in whatever field they choose.” (KNO)

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Tuesday upheld the validity of government orders and schemes on grant of Proprietary or freehold rights over state land prior to coming into effect of Roshni Act which was scrapped last year.

Disposing of a number of petitions, a division bench of Justices Ali Mohammad Magrey and Vinod Chatterji Koul made it clear that the government cannot deny the grant of proprietary or freehold rights on any “arbitrary, unreasonable and illegal basis.”

“We are unable to accept the argument advanced on behalf of the Respondents (officials) that all pending cases of applicants under any pre-existing Scheme/Government Order of the (government) stood automatically rejected upon coming into force of the Roshni Act/Rules,” the division bench said.

“In any event, since the Roshni Act/Rules having already been declared are null and void by a coordinate Division Bench of this Court by its decision dated 9th October, 2020 in PIL No. 19/2011, the Respondents (officials) cannot take shelter under the Roshni Act/Rules to advance such an argument,” the court said after examining the decision of the coordinate Bench which it said applies to beneficiaries of rebates, discounts and concessions under the specific scheme envisaged by the Roshni Act/Rules.

“It does not apply to the 1973 Government Order or the 1976 Government Order. It also does not apply to those successful lessees/petitioners in whose favour earlier judgements had been delivered by this Court enforcing their rights under any pre-existing Scheme/Government Order that existed before the enactment of the Roshni Act/Roshni Rules, more so, if such judgements had attained finality and had even been implemented.”

The court said that the government cannot take “shelter” under the decision of the Division Bench’s 9th October 2020 verdict to argue that lessees/petitioners under a pre-existing Scheme/Government Order, who had been granted freehold rights would now stand deprived of their proprietary or freehold rights, notwithstanding the fact that such lessees/petitioners were not beneficiaries of any rebates, discounts and concessions under the Roshni Act/Rules at all. “We find that argument completely unacceptable, more so, when the subject matter of the controversy before the Division Bench in PIL No.19/2011 had nothing to do with any such pre-existing Scheme/Government Order,” the court said and held such cases cannot be clubbed with the cases of beneficiaries under the Roshni Act and Rules.

In conclusion, the court issued slew of directions and among others ordered that in cases where the  application for grant of proprietary/freehold rights has been made during the subsistence of any Scheme or Government Order, prior to Roshni  Act/Rules,  and such application having duly been recommended by the recommending authorities, the government cannot deny the grant of proprietary/freehold rights to the applicants under the scheme or Government Order on any arbitrary, unreasonable and illegal basis.

“In such cases, the applicant cannot be made to suffer because of the delay, default or omission on the part of the Respondents (officials),” the court said.

In such cases where the process has further culminated in a decision by the government to grant proprietary/freehold rights to the applicants, but the decision was not implemented by government functionaries on some inexplicable, illegal, arbitrary and legally unsustainable basis, such applicants case would be on a much higher footing.

“The Roshni Act/Rules or the decision of the Division Bench of this Court, dated 9 th October, 2020, in PIL No. 19/2011 do not extinguish or destroy the rights of any (such) applicant if such rights  had  accrued  under  any  such  pre-existing Scheme/Government Order.”

In any event, the court said, its earlier judgements, upholding the rights of any lessees/petitioners accrued under any such pre-existing Scheme/Government Order regarding grant of proprietary/freehold rights which have attained finality and have been duly implemented, remain binding and their implementation cannot be undone based on the decision of the Division Bench of the Court on 9th October, 2020.

“The procedural formalities followed for the implementation of such judgements by the Respondents (officials) do not impact the binding and conclusive nature of such judgements in favour of such lessees/petitioners,” the court said, adding, “Such concluded cases cannot be reopened.” (GNS)

Jammu: A person was killed and two others suffered injuries when a load carrier they were travelling in skidded off the road and plunged into a deep gorge in Ramban district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Tuesday.

Police said that the vehicle on its way to Neel from Makarkoot late on Monday evening met with an accident and fell into a gorge when its driver Shakeel Ahmad (19), a resident of Parnote, lost control on reaching Gugwani.

They said that teams were immediately rushed to the accident site.

The driver had died on the spot while two others namely Nazir Ahmad Sheikh and Shabir Ahmad, were rescued and shifted to the hospital, police added.