Despite the ‘rarest-of-rare-use’ directive for pellet shotguns by the Union Home Ministry four days ago, Valley’s premier Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital (SMHS) continues to receive people with pellet injures.
On Friday, one protester from Bandipora was badly hit in the eye, even as the hospital has admitted eight injured protesters.
“We have registered eight patients so far. We are attending to them right now and cannot share details about the injuries and causes immediately. We have been admitting pellet injuries too,” SMHS medical superintendent Nazir Chaudhary told
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Constituted on the heels of growing eye injuries to Valley protesters due to pellet guns, the Union Home Ministry appointed a committee four days ago, however, deciding not to outright ban the guns, instead calling “for use in rarest of rare cases”.
However, in the past three days, over 50 protesters who were admitted to SMHS and Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences had sustained pellet injuries. Around half of them were hit in the eyes, according to hospital sources.
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One Nasir Mir, a resident of Baramulla, may lose eyesight after pellets hit his eyes on Wednesday. More than 684 victims have sustained pellet injuries, mainly hit in the eyes, since July 8. At least 40 civilians have lost eyesight due to pellets.
The CRPF fired a massive 1.3 million pellets in 32 days in the Valley to control violent protests.