Highest single-day spike of 198 COVID-19 cases in Ladakh, curbs reimposed in Kargil

Leh, Jun 13 () Ladakh recorded the highest single-day spike of 198 COVID-19 cases on Saturday, taking the total tally cases in the Union territory to 437, officials said as a strict lockdown was reimposed June 30 in Kargil which has the most active cases.

All the fresh cases were reported from Kargil, where restrictions were imposed again on an order of district magistrate Baseer-ul-Haq Choudhary, they said.

Ladakh has so far reported one death while 68 people have been cured of the disease and discharged from the hospitals.

"The number of active cases in the region stands at 368, including 300 in Kargil. Condition of all of them is stable," an official said.

Union Territory administration declared both Kargil and Leh districts as "red zones" in view of the surge in COVID-19 cases.

Baseer-ul-Haq Choudhary, who is also chairman of Kargil district disaster management authority, had on Friday evening convened an emergency meeting of the magistrates and police officials and stressed on strict implementation of COVID-19 restrictions in all parts of the district in view of the spike in the number of cases.

Movement of medical staff should be allowed while those of vehicles with essential commodities should be subject to the one plus one formula, he said.

"Lockdown restrictions will be tightened in view of the spike in COVID-19 cases. These restrictions will continue to remain in force till June 30," Choudhary said.

However, he said, the decision can be reviewed as the situation unfolds in the coming days and further relaxations can be given if there is an improvement.

Emphasizing on the need to further strengthen precautionary measures, he urged the people to follow the guidelines religiously.

"The administration will adopt zero tolerance against those violating the SOPs and guidelines and they will be dealt with strictly," Choudhary warned.

Regarding the conduct of official work in Government offices, the District Magistrate said all offices will remain open and employees will be allowed to attend their offices by showing identity cards.

"Working with a continued sense of moral responsibility and sensitivity and collective efforts are the only solution to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus so that we can overcome this crucial situation," he said. TAS NSD NSD