Mobile laundry van deployed to ensure personal hygiene at quarantine centres in Kathua

Authorities have deployed a mobile laundry van to ensure people lodged at COVID-19 quarantine centres in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir get clean cloths, bed sheets, blankets and pillow covers, officials said on Friday.

The Jammu and Kashmir government has been working tirelessly to contain the spread of COVID-19 and at the same time to minimise the impact of the ongoing lockdown on the most vulnerable people, they said.

Kathua, which is the entry point into Jammu and Kashmir, houses the largest number of over 10,000 people in administrative quarantine facilities.

"To lessen their woes, the district administration came up with an innovative idea of deploying a mobile laundry -- a dedicated vehicle equipped with washing machines -- for providing free washing of cloths to the inmates at their respective quarantine centres on turn by turn basis," a senior district officer said.

The idea was to enable inmates to stay with clean cloths, bed sheets, blankets and pillow covers, maintain good personal hygiene and also feel relieved of the work of washing their belongings during their stay, he said.

The twin-washing machine laden truck of the Public Works Department has so far washed over 5,000 clothing by way of stopping at every quarantine centre daily, he said.

The team deputed for the task of washing is taking full precautions by wearing masks and maintaining safe distancing all the time, officials said.

The step is one of the key measures taken by the district administration to ensure proper care of the inmates besides making provision of safe drinking water, food, medicines, toiletries and security.

"The facility has reduced the stress of inmates to a great extent," Kathua Deputy Commissioner O P Bhagat said.

The initiative of 'Mobile Laundry' has won great appreciation of the inmates of quarantine centres who hailed the district administration, he said.

The people are cooperating with the administration by staying in their homes, the most effective measure to break the chain of transmission of the novel coronavirus.

"At the same time the government and the local administration are also taking all care to maintain the quarantine centres well, where a huge number of people are being housed on arrival from outside Jammu and Kashmir," the deputy commissioner said.