Jammu Tawi, Nov 6: Jammu and Kashmir reported 151 Covid-19 infections on Saturday, the highest single-day surge in 45 days, taking the overall tally to 332,911, the administration said in its daily health bulletin.
However, no deaths were reported and the overall toll in the Union territory stood at 4,440, it added.
The Union territory had last recorded 172 cases on September 23.
Of the total cases on Saturday, 135 cases were reported in Kashmir valley, with Srinagar, which has been witnessing a spurt in cases since October 27, responsible for 79 infections.
Srinagar deputy commissioner Mohammad Aijaz Asad said of the total active cases in J&K, half of them were reported in Srinagar district
“If people don’t follow Covid-19 safety protocols, then Srinagar could be the reason behind the start of the third wave in J&K,” he said.
At least 14 cases were registered in Baramulla and 12 in Budgam.
Jammu division, on the other hand, registered 16 infections, the bulletin said.
The district also recorded the highest number of fatalities at 1,146, followed by Srinagar where 851 people have succumbed to the infection.
With 69 recoveries on Saturday, the number of active cases stood at 1,091, officials said.
At 554, Srinagar registered the highest number of active cases, followed by Baramulla and Budgam districts which have 160 and 85 active cases, respectively.
The total number of recoveries reached 327,380, prompting the recovery rate to rise to 98.35%.
The bulletin also said that at least 81,729 doses of Covid-19 vaccines were administered so far, taking the overall doses administered in the Union territory to 15.1 million.
As many as 41,649 tests were conducted in the past 24 hours in the Union territory, the administration said.
“ Srinagar has its own characteristics. It’s population density is more. It is the capital city and there is a lot of intermingling. All the major educational institutions, health institutions and tertiary care hospitals are here,” Prof Dr Mohammad Salim Khan, head of department of community medicine at Government Medical College, Srinagar, and nodal officer, said.
Meanwhile, lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha reviewed the Covid situation during a series of meetings with the members of the Covid Task Force, deputy commissioners, and superintendents of police.
“The main line of defence is now vaccination. We have secured sufficient supplies to support vaccination and efforts should be made to maximise uptake,” he said.
