india

Updated: Mar 29, 2020 10:45 IST

Jammu and Kashmir reported its second Covid-19 related death on Sunday after a 67-year-old man died in Srinagar’s Chest Disease Hospital in the morning.

The death came a day after Jammu and Kashmir recorded 13 new cases with 33 people testing positive for Covid-19 in the Union territory so far. The number of cases on Saturday was the highest in the Union territory for a single day.

“Sad start to the day. Unfortunate demise of a coronavirus patient in Srinagar this morning,” Rohit Kansal, principal secretary and JK government, tweeted.

The person who died in the hospital had no travel history but he had met a couple who had come from Saudi Arabia. The couple is currently admitted in Government Medical College (GMC) in Baramulla.

A 65-year-old religious preacher from Srinagar, who had tested positive for the coronavirus disease earlier in the week, had died on Thursday.

Most of those who have contracted the coronavirus disease are contacts of the preacher and another infected person who tested positive last week after returning from abroad.

“J&K Hardly do I finish my press briefing -28 cases-that I get more unpleasant news -5 new positive cases- 2 in Srinagar, 3 in Jammu- all contacts of previously positive ones ; All Jammu cases asymptomatic. We are at 33 now (sic),” Rohit Kansal had tweeted late on Saturday night.

BVR Subrahmanyam, J-K’s chief secretary, appealed people to stay calm and not panic as the number of Covid-19 patients rose to 33.

Subrahmanyam said the J-K administration has undertaken an aggressive testing campaign to detect Covid-19 cases as a result of which there is an increase in the number.

He said the five new positive cases on Saturday were all contacts of exiting patients and are asymptomatic which would have never been known for up to two weeks and they would have infected hundreds subsequently.

The chief secretary said the testing rate in J-K is over 10% of those under surveillance which is higher than states like Kerala. He said medical capacities, response mechanism and other parameters are being quietly ramped up.

Subrahmanyam complimented the frontline health workers, field administration and volunteers who are resolutely fighting on the ground to defeat the pandemic.

Shahid Choudhary, Srinagar’s deputy commissioner, said a lot more is required to be done for breaking the chain.

Former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah, who was released recently after nearly eight months in detention, also expressed concern over the growing number of Covid-19 cases.

“The number of positive #COVIDー19 cases in J&K is going up but it’s not too late to #FlattenTheCurve. All we have to do is follow the guidelines to maintain #SocialDistanacing & #StayAtHomeAndStaySafe. Please disclose your travel history & contacts to the authorities (sic),” Omar tweeted.

So far, 5763 travellers and people in contact with suspected cases have been put under surveillance.

Meanwhile, all six samples tested in Ladakh were reported to be negative. Not a single positive case has been reported in the last seven days in Ladakh where 13 people had tested positive for coronavirus.

Two people have already recovered from the disease, officials have said.