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| Worst fears come true as dozens of migrant labourers test positive for Corona Virus in Kashmir | | Govt changes SOP, asks for testing of these labourers in respective districts | |  Jehangir Rashid
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, July 21: Worst fears have come true since dozens of migrant labourers have tested positive for Corona Virus thus risking the lives of the people of Kashmir since most of these labourers are working in the brick kilns in the valley.
Early Times has learnt from official sources that more than 100 migrant labourers who entered Kashmir in the recent past have so far tested positive for COVID-19. The number is all set to go up since reports of hundreds of migrant labourers are awaited.
The Budgam district located in the Central Kashmir bore the brunt of Corona Virus cases of the migrant labourers since 70 percent of the cases have been reported from this district. The same got proved through the media bulletin issued by the Department of Information on the night of July 20 (Monday).
In the bulletin it was written that out of the 94 cases reported from Budgam 73 are travelers with all of them being the labourers who have entered the district from different states of the country. The things may turn out to be worse for the Budgam district as majority of the brick kilns of Kashmir are located in this district along with Pulwama in South Kashmir.
It would be in place to mention here that the Jammu & Kashmir government had claimed that it has collected 14,002 samples of labourers arriving at Qazigund toll post from 14th to 20th of July 2020 for COVID-19 testing. As per the official data received in this regard, the samples are being collected from the labourers who are arriving at Jammu and Kashmir from several other states and UTs.
According to the figures, 1,012 samples were collected on July 14, of which, only six samples were tested positive while results for remaining 12990 of the total 14002 samples collected are awaited. The government said that at Toll Post Qazigund 2227 samples were collected on July 15; 2099 on July 16; 2350 on July 17; 2893 samples were collected on July 18; 2000 on July 19; and 1421 on July 20 for corona virus testing.
The clarification from the government comes after severe criticism from the people that the migrant labourers are being allowed to enter Kashmir without testing at the entry point near the Jawahar Tunnel. Some of the videos in this regard got circulated in the social media with the migrant labourers in these videos saying that no COVID-19 test was carried on them.
Meanwhile, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Pandurang K Pole today said that all incoming migrant laborers shall undergo Covid-19 testing in respective districts from July 23. The Divisional Commissioner said this while chairing a weekly Covid-19 review meeting to take stock of the situation and arrangements put in place for effective containment of deadly virus.
Pole directed all Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of Kashmir to constitute three member teams and train them for smooth conduct of antigen testing of all laborers. He instructed the DCs to identify centrally located places and structures like schools, bus stands and vacant buildings to conduct these tests and added that antigen testing shall help in quick identification of the positive cases and their separation from others to control spread of the disease. He said that the positive laborers shall be immediately sent into quarantine, while as negative shall be allowed for work at brick kilns. |
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