Threat still looms

As winters set in early in Kashmir, the threat of a resurgence of Covid-19 has also emerged as data shows an increase in active cases and fatalities in the last few weeks. Kashmir is in the middle of a cold wave that began after an early snowfall and rains at the fag end of autumn last month. There has been a substantial dip in both day and night temperatures. Amid this, cases of Covid-19 have shot up though not substantially. According to official data, during the month of October, the Union Territory reported only 10 deaths due to Covid-19 however in the last two days, six Covid-19 deaths were reported in J&K and alarmingly all of them took place in Kashmir. J&K recorded 4 Covid-19 deaths and 98 positive cases — 84 in Kashmir and 14 in the Jammu division on November 1. A day later J&K saw two more fatalities in Kashmir due to Covid-19. The day recorded  110 new cases — 92 from Kashmir and 18 from the Jammu division. On November 3, J&K reported 99 Covid cases of which 81 were from Kashmir alone. Though, no fatalities were reported on November 3 and 4. As for the active cases, they have again started to increase in Jammu and Kashmir especially in Kashmir. Positive cases have increased from 800 to 981 in the last 15 days. As per the official data, the total number of active cases in Jammu and Kashmir were 800 including 673 from the Kashmir division and 127 from the Jammu division on October 20. However, in the last 15 days, the active cases have increased from 800 to 981 in J&K which includes 860 in the Kashmir division to 121 in the Jammu division. As per the data, active cases have increased in Kashmir from 673 to 860 while in the Jammu division the cases have decreased from 127 to 121 in the same period. In the Jammu division, the Jammu district has the highest 45 active cases while in Kashmir, Srinagar has the highest 476 active cases. Meanwhile, the Union Health Ministry has asked three states/UTs including Jammu and Kashmir to undertake a review of the rising COVID-19 case numbers and weekly positivity rates and enhance testing. Ahuja Additional Secretary of the Union Health Ministry in a letter to Additional Chief Secretary of Health, J&K had said that the Union Territory has shown an approximately 61 per cent increase in weekly new cases. People must ensure that they follow Covid-appropriate behaviour and those who have still not got themselves vaccinated must do the same at the earliest. The pandemic is far from over as the World Health Organization has time and again stated.