MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir continues to witness an alarming surge in Covid-19 infections as 35 more persons tested positive for the viral disease over the past 24 hours; pushing the region’s tally to 396, a minister said on Sunday.

Minister for Information Technology and spokesperson for the AJK government Dr Mustafa Bashir Abbasi said that 25 of the new cases surfaced in Muzaffarabad, four in Bhimber and six in Sudhnoti. “Of late, the state capital Muzaffarabad is recording a higher number of patients on a daily basis. Until May 1, there was only one Covid-19 patient in Muzaffarabad but the tally swelled to around 178 in five weeks. This warrants extra care by the residents of the capital. So far, a total of 8,691 tests have been conducted across AJK and only 53 results are pending. Of 396 patients, 195 recovered and returned to their homes, but five from Muzaffarabad, two from Mirpur and one from Poonch did not survive,” he said.

Regarding 193 under treatment patients, he said: “79 are in Muzaffarabad, 27 in Bagh, 24 in Mirpur , 23 in Bhimber, 15 in Sudhnoti, 11 in Rawalakot, 9 in Kotli and 5 in Hattian Bala.”

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2020