Two females among 17 more test Corona +ve, Jammu’s tally 239

A view of deserted ‘Darshani Deodi’ (entrance) of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Ji shrine at Katra town of Reasi district. (UNI)
A view of deserted ‘Darshani Deodi’ (entrance) of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Ji shrine at Katra town of Reasi district. (UNI)

SMVDSB in touch with other shrines for SOP
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 23: In fresh surge in Coronavirus cases in Jammu region, 17 persons including two females, tested positive for the virus today-the highest being 13 in Ramban district, two in Jammu and one each in Poonch and Kathua even as first train from Kerala reached Udhampur Railway Station this afternoon carrying 717 stranded persons while the J&K Government said so far 87948 inhabitants of the Union Territory have been brought back from different parts of the country in special trains, buses and flights.
Meanwhile, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) is working on Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to be adopted for restoration of pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine, which has been suspended for past over two months, but will finalize it only after the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) comes out with guidelines on reopening of the shrines.
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“We will come out with the SOP only after the MHA releases guidelines for resumption of the yatra to holy cave shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi Ji. An in-house exercise is on as to how the yatra can be restored by maintaining social distancing and taking other steps to prevent spread of Coronavirus,” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) SMVDSB Ramesh Kumar told the Excelsior.
He said the Shrine Board is also in touch with other major shrines of the country in making the SOP but added that it will be finalized only after the MHA orders resumption of yatra and release guidelines.
A 32-year-old youth from Arnia, who had travel history of Mumbai and a 19-year-old girl from Jagti, Nagrota, who had returned from New Delhi, tested positive for COVID-19 in Jammu district today. Yesterday also, two students, one each hailing from Jagti and Talab Tillo had tested Corona positive.
Doctors said both of them were asymptomatic and under administrative quarantine after their return from outside. They have been admitted in the Chest Diseases Hospital, Bakshi Nagar.
Ramban district reported 13 fresh Corona positive cases today including a 26-year old girl of Banihal with travel history of Qazigund. Apart from the girl, seven students and workers of Ramban had returned from New Delhi recently in trains and buses and were under administrative quarantine at various centres while five others were contacts of the positive patients.
Of 13 Ramban cases, eight were tested positive at Microbiology Department of the Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu where nearly 1285 tests are being conducted today under the command of HoD Dr Shashi S Sudan while five others reported positive at the Command Hospital Udhampur.
Lt Col Inam Danish Khan, Classified Specialist (Microbiology) at the Command Hospital Udhampur, said a total of six persons today tested Corona positive in their laboratory including five from Ramban and one from Kashmir, whose sample was taken at Udhampur. Rest of the tested cases were negative, he added.
A 35-year-old man from village Sangiote in Gursai area of Poonch district, who had returned from Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh on May 19 and was under administrative quarantine reported positive for COVID-19. He had gone to Aligarh for obtaining coaching of the exams.
SSP Poonch Ramesh Angral said the COVID patient has been shifted to the Government Medical College (GMC) Rajouri.
A 40-year-old man hailing from Billawar tehsil in Kathua district, who had returned from New Delhi and was under administrative quarantine, tested positive for COVID-19 today. He has been shifted to the hospital.
Two COVID patients of Kathua were today treated and discharged from the Chest Diseases Hospital, Bakshi Nagar, Jammu, Medical Superintendent, Dr Rajeshwar Sharma said.
Jammu region now has 239 total Corona cases and 165 active cases. Seventy-two patients have been treated and discharged while there were two deaths.
Meanwhile, first train from Thiruvananthapuram, the Kerala capital, reached Udhampur Railway Station this afternoon carrying 717 stranded persons of 18 districts of Jammu and Kashmir, the highest being 491 from Srinagar district. All of them have been sent to their district headquarters for sampling and administrative quarantine, District Magistrate Udhampur, Dr Piyush Singla said.
People from some of the districts were sampled at Udhampur, he added.
Dr Singla said a total of 7960 persons have been sampled in Udhampur district. Out of them, 6434 have been sent for home quarantine after they tested negative for Coronavirus while 1526 persons were still under administrative quarantine.
Three trains today left Katra for Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh carrying 6135 migrant workers from Jammu and Kashmir.
CEO Shrine Board and Nodal Officer Ramesh Kumar said two trains left for Chhatarpur in Madhya Pradesh carrying 2206 and 2160 migrant workers respectively while another train left for Raigarh in Chhattisgarh with 1769 workers.
A statement issued by the Jammu and Kashmir Government said so far the Government has brought 87948 residents of the Union Territory stranded in different parts of the country back in 26 special trains, four flights and scores of buses by strictly observing all necessary preventive measures regarding the virus.
“The Government has evacuated 65374 stranded persons in buses through Lakhanpur and 21922 persons in special trains which have landed at Jammu and Udhampur Railway Stations. During last 24 hours, 875 stranded persons have crossed Lakhanpur and entered J&K,” the statement said.
It added that 10 trains have so far reached Jammu carrying total of 8867 passengers while 13055 stranded persons have reached Udhampur in 16 trains.

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