Srinagar, May 21: 21 policemen and an intern doctor were among the 59 fresh cases of the COVID-19 infection in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. With these cases, the overall tally has mounted to 1449—1238 in Kashmir and 211 in Jammu. Among them 745 are active cases—140 in Jammu and 605 in Valley while 684 patients have recovered—69 from Jammu and 615 from Kashmir while 20 others have died.

Officials said that Kulgam district reported 21 cases, Anantnag 12, Kupwara 7, Srinagar 5, Budgam 4, Kathua and Ramban 3 each, Ganderbal 2 while Jammu, Kishtwar and Doda reported one case each.

Dr. Salim Khan, nodal officer for COVID-19 at the Government Medical College Srinagar, said that 33 samples out of over 700 samples tested at Microbiology Lab of CD Hospital here returned positive for the pathogen.

Among the samples which returned positive, 21 were from District Police Lines Kulgam, 11 from Anantnag including 2 pregnant women besides an intern doctor from Psychiatric Disease Hospital, he said.

Sources said the policemen who have tested positive are aged between 25 to 59 years and are residents of different parts of Valley.

Police said all the 21 were already in isolation from March 18 in a compound separated from DPL Kulgam by 3 kilometres.

“The officials were all part of a special pool of 60 personnel created as a reserve exclusively for Covid-19 duties at Quarantine and isolation centers, for handling Covid-19 patients and potential carriers and for acting as substitutes for police stations in case of covid breakout in a particular unit,” police said in a statement.

The samples of the officials were being taken from time to time as a precautionary measure, it said. “When one such sample turned positive four days ago, Health authorities were requested to take samples of all the officials present in the reserve,” the police said, adding, “There is no need to panic as all the officials have been and are in isolation and were never put on public interface duties such as nakas, police stations, etc.”

Nodal officer for coronavirus control at SKIMS, Dr G H Yatoo, said that 14 test samples returned positive for the pathogen. However sources said that three among them pertained to those who had previously tested positive and samples were sent for retest.

Professor Farooq Jan, medical Superintendent of the hospital, said that the seven among the samples which returned positive were received from CMO Srinagar and includes 26-year-old from Maisuma, 21-year-old from Bemina and seven from Kaweri, Reshigund and main Kupwara, all travelers with history of travel to Delhi, Ambala, Dehradun and UP. He said two samples were received from DH Ganderbal and include 37-year-old from Ganderbal and 22-year-old youth from Safapora. The three other samples were from DH Pulwama and include 60-year-old man and two women—one aged 20 and other 50—from Chatabal Kulgam.

Meanwhile, four samples out of 400 tested at SKIMS testing lab returned positive. They include 3 males—2 from Soibug and one from Naru besides a female from Loolipora areas Budgam district. Also, sources said an operation (LSCS ) was performed on a Covid positive pregnant female from Anantnag at the hospital. “Both mother and child are ok,” a doctor at the hospital said.

Seven cases were reported from private Lab—two from Kathua, one each from Haryana, Jodhpur Rajasthan, Dyala, Kishtwar and Anantnag.

With these fresh cases, Anantnag now has 264 COVID-19 patients, highest in all districts, followed by Kulgam (192), Srinagar (174), Bandipora (137), Baramulla (129), Kupwara (125), Shopian (109), Jammu (68), Budgam (62), Kathua (40), Udhampur (33), Ramban (30), Ganderbal (27), Pulwama (19), Samba (16), Rajouri (8), Kishtwar (7), four each in Poonch Reasi and one in Doda.

The government said six more COVID-19 patients have recovered and were discharged from various hospitals and include three from Jammu division and three from Kashmir Division.

Additionally, till date 125866 travellers and persons in contact with suspected cases have been enlisted for surveillance which included 33586 persons in home quarantine including facilities operated by government, 57 in Hospital Quarantine, 745 in hospital isolation and 21893 under home surveillance. Besides, 69565 persons have completed their surveillance period. (GNS)