PEOPLE IN J&K’S RURAL AREAS RUE LACK OF PREPAREDNESS

JAMMU: Even as the administration of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir claimed it has been doing everything to contain spread of coronavirus, people in remote districts and rural areas negated the claims.

Ravinder Singh Sambyal, sarpanch of Samba’s Kaily Mandi halqa, which has seven wards with a population of 1600 people, said, “There is nothing on the ground: no fumigation, no awareness campaign or preparedness in primary health centres. Today, assistant commissioner revenue has asked us to assemble for a meeting to discuss COVID 19. Even the Samba district hospital has medical officer only at night. We have been left to the mercy of God.”

Darshan Bharti from border town of Poonch said, “There is no preparedness. The administration has issued prohibitory orders under Section 144 CRPC, but it is not being implemented stringently. Only few posters and hoardings have been put up by education department in the town about the virus. Much hype has been created, but theirs is hardly anything done by the administration.”

Suresh Sharma from Bishnah area, a rural belt of Jammu district, said, “In Bishnah, Deoli and Makhanpur, some people, who have returned from abroad, have been quarantined and health teams are inspecting them daily. However, the interiors remain neglected.”

Director National Health Mission (NHM) and nodal officer for campaign against Covid 19 in the UT, Bhupinder Kumar, claimed that the administration acted in time and has been initiating all the requisite measures.