Virus infections pick up pace,cross 8% mark in J&K this year

Mortality rate at 1.38%, no. of active cases stands at 13,400

Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing an increase in COVID-19 cases at a pace of 8.12% this year and has also recorded 28 cases of highly virulent U.K. strains, said officials.

“The situation is challenging if we compare it with last year’s April figures. This year, April saw 77 deaths in J&K. The rate of growth in cases is 8.12% and the mortality rate is 1.38%,” Health and Medical Education Commissioner Atal Dulloo said.

J&K on Wednesday saw 2,204 people testing positive for the virus, taking the number of active cases to around 13,400.

Mr. Dulloo has confirmed that 28 cases of U.K. COVID strains and other new strains were reported in Jammu. “However, no such cases were reported from Kashmir,” he added.

Mr. Dulloo said that 40,000 tests were being conducted every day. “J&K’s testing rate is 2,500 per million,” he said.

Hospital beds

He said that 6,000 category-I COVID beds are available at hospitals, including 10,000 bulk oxygen cylinders and 3,500 medium-sized cylinders. “The government is in a process of installing 36 oxygen generation plants with 23 to be made functional at the end of the week that will help in adding 2,000 more oxygen beds to our kitty,” he added.

At present, 534 out of 2,500 oxygen beds are occupied by patients infected with the virus, officials aslo said.