Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 25

With two more cases reported on Wednesday, the number of confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) cases has reached 31 in Punjab. One of the fresh cases is from Moranwali village in Hoshiarpur and the other from Ludhiana.

This Hoshiarpur case is also linked to 70-year-old Baldev Singh of SBS Nagar district, who succumbed to the deadly virus last week.

With the new case, the total number of cases getting infected from Baldev alone has reached 22; those affected include 18 of his family members from Banga and Phillaur towns. He had returned from Germany after which his condition deteriorated last week. He was found positive after death.

The latest to be affected by the deadly virus is a resident of Moranwali village in Garhshankar. He is the son of a priest, who was serving at Pathlawa dera of Banga where deceased Baldev Singh was serving too. The priest, Harbhajan Singh, has already been confirmed positive last week and Moranwali village has been sealed since then. The family members of Harbhajan Singh had been quarantined a few days ago. His son showed symptoms of fever and cough a few days back after which he, too, tested positive today.

According to health department, close contacts of the fresh case have been put under quarantine and surveillance. Samples of close contacts of these cases have also been taken and sent to the designated labs for testing.

As per the state health department, at present besides 130 suspected cases, around 1,150 people have been quarantined and one has succumbed to the deadly virus.  The results of 229 cases are awaited.

At present, confirmed 31 cases have been reported from five districts. This includes 18 from SBS Nagar, five cases from Mohali, three each from Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur and one each from Amritsar and from Ludhiana. Interestingly, the reported from Ludhiana doesn’t have any travel history. So the health officials are trying to locate his source of infection.

No confirmed case has been reported from rest of the 17 districts.

The health department has ordered to set up 2,500 isolation beds at 20 treatment-cum-isolation facilities for Covid-19 in the state’s various district hospitals and medical colleges.

These facilities will offer services free of cost. According to orders issued by Secretary (Health), all the 20 facilities have been made operational today.

District-wise cases

SBS Nagar           18

SAS Nagar           5

Jalandhar             3

Hoshiarpur          3

Amritsar               1

Ludhiana              1

Samaan Lateef

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, March 26

Jammu and Kashmir witnessed the first coronavirus death on Thursday as the 65-year-old man with a long travel history within India died on Thursday.

The deceased of Shah Anwar colony of Hyderpora locality in Srinagar died on Thursday morning at Chest Disease (CD) hospital, Srinagar, where he was admitted for the past four days.

“Unfortunately, we lost him this morning,” said Dr Samia Rashid, Principal, Government Medical College Srinagar under which CD hospital works.

Doctors say the man had a medical history of illness with diabetes, hypertension and obesity. He was admitted to CD Hospital on March 22 and declared positive on March 24.

Four of his close aides were found positive on Wednesday after they met him at a mosque in Samba district where hundreds of followers of Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh had assembled between March 12 to 16 for a religious congregation.

The Deoband leadership has come under sharp criticism from the locals for not avoiding religious gatherings.

Many people compared the deceased preacher with south Korea’s ‘Patient 31’, who is a member of a fringe church called Shincheonji, and was called “super spreader” for infecting several thousand people.

Soon after the preacher was declared positive for CoVID-19, hundreds of followers of Deoband lined up outside hospitals in Kashmir for screening.

Even two doctors, who treated him at Sopore sub-district hospital on March 16, were admitted on Wednesday to Government Medical College Baramulla for CoVID-19 testing.

The long travel history of the Deobandi preacher in India has perplexed the doctors.

He had travelled half of India from Andaman Nicobar to New Delhi to Uttar Pradesh before returning to Kashmir on March 16. He met thousands of people including foreigners at various religious congregations in India during his nearly three-month long travel.

Eleven persons had tested positive for the COVID-19 in Jammu and Kashmir.

With his death, the total number of such patients in the entire J&K is 10 including a woman who has recovered but is under observation.

New Delhi, March 24

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced a complete lockdown across the country for 21 days from midnight, asserting that social distancing is the only way out for the country to fight a decisive battle against coronavirus outbreak.

In his second national broadcast in a week on the pandemic raging across much of the world with the number of infections rising in India, Modi made a fervent appeal to the countrymen not to cross the ‘lakshman rekha’ of their homes in the next three weeks.

“If the situation is not handled in these 21 days, the country and your family could go back by 21 years. If situation is not handled in these 21 days, several families will get devastated forever,” he said underlining the massive danger the coronavirus poses.

“Jaan hai toh jahan hai (the world exists only when we live),” he said, recalling a Hindi idiom to stress on the significance of his appeal.

The Centre and state governments have taken measures to ensure that the supply of all essential items continue smoothly, he said, seeking to allay apprehensions among people about availability of food and other essential provisions.

“My fellow citizens, there is absolutely no need to panic. Essential commodities, medicines etc. would be available. Centre and various state governments will work in close coordination to ensure this,” he tweeted after his speech.

Separately, the government issued detailed guidelines about the restrictions, along with certain exemptions.

In his nearly 30-minute address, Modi underscored the challenge India faces at a time when countries with world class health infrastructure have been left “helpless” due to the rapid pace of the coronavirus’ spread as he repeatedly, at times with folded hands, asked people to remain indoors.

“To save India, to save every Indian, there will be a complete ban on people from stepping outside their houses from 12 midnight today,” he said.

“Lockdown is being imposed on every state, union territory, district, village, mohalla and street,” he added.

The lockdown will be like a “curfew” only but more stringent than the ‘janata curfew’, which the country had observed on Sunday, he said, adding it will have an economic cost but saving people’s lives is of the paramount interest to his government.

The experience of countries, which have been able to contain the virus to some extent, and experts’ views have made it clear that social distancing caused by a lockdown is the only way to break the cycle of the infection’s spread, he said.

This is the only ray of light, he asserted, adding that his government asked states to give health infrastructure their top priority at present.

A lockdown in most of the country was already in place till March 31, and Modi’s announcement extended it everywhere and for two more weeks after this month.

The lockdown will be applicable to everyone from the prime minister to a citizen in a village, he said.

Even countries like Italy, France and the US with world class infrastructure have found it hard to break the spread of the disease despite their relentless efforts, he said, emphasising the gravity of the situation.

“It took 67 days for it (COVID) to infect one lakh people at first, but only 11 days to reach a total of two lakh people. This is even more alarming that it took only 4 days for this disease to reach three lakh people from the count of two lakh.

If we want to restrict the spread of the coronavirus, we will have to break its chain of infection,” the prime minister said.

He lamented that some people suffer from this wrong mindset that only infected persons need to follow social distancing, warning that such a view can endanger lives of others and their families.

“It will be impossible to estimate the price India will have to pay if this carelessness continues. Currently India is at a stage where our current actions will determine how much we are able to minimise the impact of this disaster,” he said.

According to health experts, he said, a period of at least 21 days is extremely critical to break the infection chain of the coronavirus.

He also showed a banner he had seen on social media that read “Corona, i.e., Koi Road pe Na Nikle (no one should go out on the road)”.

It is time to consistently keep strengthening our resolve and exercise caution at every step and observing patience and discipline, he said.

Modi also asked people to remember the hard work being put in by medical personnel, media and police among others during the ongoing crisis.

He noted that the lockdown has brought a very difficult time for the poor and added that the Centre along with states, individuals from civil societies and institutions is constantly striving to reduce their problems of the poor.

The Centre has put in place a provision of Rs 15,000 crore for treating coronavirus patients and strengthening medical infrastructure in the country.

“I am confident that every Indian will not only successfully fight this difficult situation but also emerge victorious,” he said. PTI

Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur (retd)

THE call of the Prime Minister to have a thank you ‘din session’ on March 22 is long overdue for the millions who have been slogging, and still have a tough task ahead. While this is certainly for the medics, nurses, public transport operators, home delivery personnel, sanitation workers et al, one can well add a few more who have been doing seva quietly — coronavirus or not. So, when I clap this Sunday, I would also be expressing gratitude for a few more, whom many Indians do not know much about.

Medical services and staff are always caregivers, but spare a thought for personnel of the Army Medical Corps who are in the frontline with the Army — in the very trenches where the adversary trains his fire. On the Siachen Glacier, they serve for months, though the other soldiers are compulsorily brought out after three months. Ever heard of any media coverage for them while the others are in the limelight? Similarly, popping flash bulbs focus on Air Force pilots in their flying overalls, but behind every Siachen helicopter rescue covered in the media, or giving backup to every fighter sortie, are the hardworking technical personnel. They are up on duty in the dark, getting the aircraft ready for the first sortie to take off at the crack of dawn — in the blistering heat of Jaisalmer, or the numbing cold at Siachen Base Camp, day in and day out! Hats off to you guys — what would we pilots have done without you? Our lives have always been in your hands, and you have delivered every time!

And slogging out — absolutely unheralded — are the logisticians. They work from their offices, warehouses, forward logistics bases and in the langars of the infantry platoons on the frontline, aircrew rooms and messes in forward air bases and ships on the high seas. What would the war fighter have done, but for the hot mug of tea and the simple puri-aloo dished out with such love! And let’s not forget, they provision the armament too — so, here’s to all the logisticians for the great job they are doing!

And then, a logistician of a different class — the wife back home, without whom nothing can happen. We menfolk are up and away, without a care for the myriad issues and problems of running the house — the schooling of kids, their falling sick, looking after aged parents and in-laws, and so many more, but still sending you off and receiving you with a smile on your return home. That’s a dedication and love for which one wonders whether any Sunday ‘din session’ would do justice.

So, friends, let the clapping of hands and banging of utensils this Sunday convey our gratitude to the coronavirus warriors; let it also be heard at the Sia La post on Siachen, at the Campbell naval base deep down in the Andamans, and at the IAF’s advanced airstrip at Mechuka in our far East.

Tribune News Service

Jammu, March 24

The Army’s Northern Command has intensified measures to combat the outbreak and spread of coronavirus in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Army has established multiple telephone helplines to provide information and assistance to the people.

The Defence PRO said with the spread of the novel coronavirus, there was a sense of uncertainty among the people as many of them were not sure what measures to take to safeguard themselves and their family.

“There have been a series of fake social media uploads which have created panic among people. To this effect, the Army has been undertaking intense awareness campaigns and updating the public with all relevant information during this pandemic through various platforms. The initiatives are meant to ensure that people do not become unwitting carriers of the virus and are well informed about the preventive measures to be adopted,” said Lt Col Abhinav Navneet, Defence PRO.

In order to help the people to manage the stresses related to Covid-19 and to provide immediate relief to those seeking advice, helpline numbers have been activated across the UT. The helplines are a critical resource for the people and will address the questions of the residents.

Round-the-clock service

• The Army has established multiple telephone helplines to provide information and assistance to the people
• It said the helplines are a critical resource for the people and will address the questions of the residents and provide the up-to-date information resource
• The helplines will be active round the clock to address general questions and concerns regarding the prevention of Covid-19

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 23

As the Punjab government has imposed curfew to control the spread of coronavirus, it is time for MLAs to do something different!

Restricted to their homes, Congress lawmakers are using the time to nurture their hobbies — be it cooking, gardening, playing snooker or chess, or spending time with their families and pets.

Between spending time with families and taking official calls, most of the MLAs were busy coordinating with district authorities to facilitate the persons needing some sort of help during the curfew.

Check out what MLAs are up to:

New Delhi, March 24

The Army has intensified measures to combat the outbreak/spread of Covid in Jammu and Kashmir by establishing multiple telephone helplines to provide information and assistance.

There have been a series of fake social media uploads, creating panic among people. To this effect, the Army has been undertaking intense awareness campaigns, updating the public with all relevant information during this pandemic through various platforms.

These initiatives are meant to ensure that individuals do not become unwitting carriers of the virus and are well-informed about the various preventive measures to be adopted.

Srinagar residents can reach out for help on 0194-2467326, residents of other districts can seek assistance through helplines at Baramulla (0195-2238826), Kupwara (0195-5252996), Shalateng (0194-2496618), Awantipura (0193-3247087), Nagrota (0191 254 7896), Akhnoor (0192 425 4244), Rajouri (0196 226 2477), Batote (0199 824 4361), Palma (0196 226 1503), Reasi (0199 124 5319) and Narian (0196 023 0026). The helplines will be active 24×7 to address general questions and concerns. — TNS

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 24

The reduction in the staff strength in government offices to contain the Covid-19 outbreak will not affect the payment of defence pensions or the issue of new payment orders for those retiring this month.

The payment of pension for the month of March 2020, issue of pension payment orders (PPO) for personnel retiring on March 31 and the issue of the PPO in case of death have been listed as essential services in orders issued by the Controller General of Defence Accounts on March 23.

As part of the measures being implemented to mitigate the spread of Covid, the Defence Accounts Department as well as other government departments are required to function with a skeletal staff on a rotational basis from March 23 to March 31.

The orders, however, make it clear that essential work of the department is not to be affected by reduction in staff. Pay and allowances, accounts and budget, payments, IT and computer systems and pension sanction have been listed as essential services.

Meanwhile, members of the Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) who are undergoing long-term treatment for lifestyle diseases have been allowed to purchase medicines from any chemist shop instead of going to the ECHS polyclinic.

A circular issued by the ECHS Central Organisation yesterday states that veterans can purchase their monthly quota of all medicines for April as per their prescription and they will be reimbursed for it after May 15. This has been done keeping in view the guidelines on social distancing issued by the World Health Organisation and check crowding at the ECHS polyclinics.

Veterans have also been advised to avoid visiting polyclinics except in case of an emergency. Routine medical examination, blood pressure checks and physiotherapy have been suspended at some places. Strict procedures have also been laid down for dealing with dental and oral disorders.

ECHS to reimburse for April medicines

• Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) members have been allowed to purchase medicines from any chemist shop instead of going to the ECHS polyclinic.
• They can purchase their monthly quota of medicines for April as per their prescription and they will be reimbursed for it after May 15.

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Tribune News Service
Patiala/Bathinda, March 24

Punjab Police on Tuesday punished those violating the curfew in the state, which has been enforced to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

In videos that have emerged from different parts of Punjab, police can be seen wielding lathis or forcing violators to do sit-ups or crawl on the road to discourage them from venturing outside.

Bathinda police punished the violators at Ghorewala chowk.

In Patiala, despite repeated reminders to people to stay indoors, residents continued to roam on the roads, following which police personnel used mild force to ensure a complete ban on public gatherings.

Senior officials said that the police officers have been doing rounds in colonies and residential areas to ensure that there are no gatherings.

“The whole purpose is defeated if people continue to come out and meet outside their houses. It is a virus spread and we can take no chances as this time is vital to save lives,” said Patiala SSP Mandeep Sidhu.

Earlier in the day, milk, newspaper and vegetable supplies were hit as authorities failed to take any decision on the movement of these commodities. However, senior officials said that a decision to this effect will be taken by evening so that essential supplies are not hit.