J&K: COVID-19 Deaths Double In Just 15 Days, Hospitals Struggle To Accommodate Patients

As the nation grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, the deadly virus has wrecked havoc in Jammu and Kashmir in July as at least 108 people have succumbed to the virus in the last fortnight.

In the initial 115 days, starting March 8 to June 30, at least 101 deaths were reported in J&K due to COVID-19, of which 89 were from Kashmir and 12 from Jammu. However, from July 1 to July 15, the death toll increase by 108 in the UT out of which 102 were reported from Kashmir and six from Jammu.

The alarming rise in death rates point to a high mortality of patients.

While doctors claim that the rise in deaths was a reflection of the "actual number of cases" in the community, hospitals continue to struggle to accommodate moderately to critically ill COVID-19 patients.

On July 15, the UT witnessed the second highest single-day spike in novel coronavirus cases, with 493 people testing positive for the deadly virus. The total number of cases touched 11,666. While 9221 cases are from Kashmir, the other 2445 are from Jammu.

Kashmir constitutes 78.62% in the total positive cases while 21.37% are from Jammu.

"The official count of Covid-19 deaths in the valley is an understatement and only provides a snapshot of the actual death toll virus has taken," Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) President, Dr Nisar Ul Hassan said.

As the situation worsens in the UT, the J&K administration has restricted hospitals from issuing any COVID-19 related information to the media "to avoid confusion".

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