Addressing media persons about the emerging situation due to spread of COVID-19 virus commonly called Corona virus across the world, Principal Secretary, Planning and Monitoring and Information, Rohit kansal, today said that the situation is being closely monitored in Jammu and Kashmir to identify all suspected cases of the virus.Ensuring that the UT of J&K is in a state of alert, Kansal said the surveillance for this virus has been increased ever since the first advisory was issued by the Government of India on 2nd February 2020.He informed that "so far a total of 201 individuals have been contacted in Jammu and Kashmir. These include individuals who either had a travel history to countries such as China, South Korea, Iran, Thailand, Italy, South East Asia etc or came in contact with persons who had travelled to these countries. 21 suspected cases have been tested till date and no positive case has been reported so far across J&K".Urging Public to not panic, he assured that entire administrative machinery including health machinery has been further activated and is in a state of full alert and all facilities as required are being put in place."100 per cent self declaration at the airports of Jammu and Srinagar will start from tomorrow to trace any such traveller having travel history to the infected countries. Further, check points for passengers travelling by road have been set up at Lakhanpur and Lower Munda (Zig) to identify individuals with travel history to these countries", he added.
Further, dedicated 24x7 Data Control Centres have been established at Srinagar and Jammu to receive the information of travellers coming from the affected countries and to receive information from the Government of India to further transmit the same to the districts for their tracing at the earliest, Kansal said, adding that all suspected cases are being managed through the defined protocols."We want to assure everybody that there is absolutely no cause of panic. All the required protocols and steps are being taken. Doctors, health specialists administrative officers of health departments are reaching out to everybody through mass media informing people at large of the various respiratory hygiene, cough and sneeze etiquette, hand hygiene steps that are needed to be taken. The department will continue to engage with everybody on these issues", Kansal maintained.Responding to a question by the media person, Bhupinder Kumar Mission Director NHM informed that adequate number of facilities have been raised both in Jammu and Srinagar as well as district level including quarantine and isolation facilities, ICUs with dedicated ventilators have also been set up.Sanjeev Verma, Divisional Commissioner Jammu; Dr. Syed Sehrish Asgar, Director Information & Public Relations; Dr. Shashi, HoD Microbiology GMC, Jammu; Dr. Shafqat, Nodal Officer, Corona virus, UT J&K; Dr. Deepak Kapoor, Surveillance Officer, Directorate of Health Services, Jammu were also present on the occasion.