Village in JK's Samba declared coronavirus hotspot after first case surfaces

Supwal village in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba district was declared a coronavirus hotspot on Monday after one of its residents, an Army jawan, tested positive for the disease here.

The jawan was posted in Agra and had returned to the village on March 18 on leave. He was among the four people who tested positive for the virus in Jammu region on Sunday.

The district administration declared entire Supwal village as hotspot after recording the first COVID-19 positive case from there. The district administration has sealed all the inward and outward movement of men, material and means from the village to contain the spread of virus till all contacts of the COVID-19 patient are tested negative, an official spokesperson said here.

He said a designated district officer has been stationed in the village and a control room set up. The official said essential commodities have been made available and door-to-door tests are being conducted, besides other necessary measures.

Deputy Commissioner, Samba, Rohit Khajuria said that 10 medical teams, revenue officials, police personnel and panchayat members would carry out door-to-door medical checkups and contact-tracing, and submit reports within three days.

The complete area shall be sanitised while masks and gloves shall also be distributed among the public, he said.

Meanwhile, 849 people completed their quarantine period at Chadwal, in nearby Kathua district, and were sent back to their respective districts.

Deputy Commissioner, Kathua, O P Bhagat said hundreds of travellers, including students, who had arrived in Kathua from nearby Punjab were isolated and shifted to quarantine facilities as a precautionary measure.

"More than 65 quarantine facilities have been established in the district for accommodating these inmates where they were provided food and shelter since March 23," he said.