Srinagar: Kashmir reported two Covid-19 deaths on Thursday taking the death toll in Jammu and Kashmir to 20.

Dr M Saleem Khan, nodal officer for Covid-19 at GMC Srinagar said Chest Diseases Hospital one death on Thursday while another Covid-19 death was reported at SMHS Hospital.

The deceased include 80-year-old woman of Bemina in Srinagar who was admitted to SMHS Hospital with bilateral pneumonia and hypertension on Tuesday and was kept in an isolation ward. The second include a 70-year-old woman from Budgam district, who was suffering from Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with restrictive lung disease.

Budgam woman was also admitted to SMHS Hospital for his ailments and later shifted to CD Hospital after she tested positive for Covid-19.

Dr Khan said the Srinagar woman from Usmania Colony in Bemina died at SMHS Hospital late Wednesday evening a day before detected Covid-19 positive.

“She breathed her last on May 20 evening at SMHS Hospital and was kept in GMC Srinagar mortuary. Her COVID test report came positive today,” he said.

The deceased woman from Budgam’s Parisabad village died Thursday afternoon in the ICU of CD Hospital after sudden cardiac arrest.

“She was initially admitted to SMHS Hospital on May 15 and tested positive for Covid. She was shifted to CD Hospital Srinagar on May 18 with restrictive lung disease and COVID pneumonia,” Dr Khan said.

With her death, the toll due to the coronavirus in Jammu and Kashmir has risen to 20. This includes 18 from Kashmir and 2 from Jammu division.

With today’s death, Budgam now has two Covid victims so far.

Srinagar district has reported six deaths, highest in any district followed by Baramulla 4, Anantnag 4, Budgam 2 while one death each has been reported in Bandipora, Kulgam, Udhampur, and Jammu.

Meanwhile, 59 new positive cases were reported in the Valley during the last 24 hours which include two expecting mothers, a medical intern and 21 policemen from District Police Lines, Kulgam.

With the fresh cases, the tally of Covid-19 patients in Jammu and Kashmir reached 1,449.

The nodal officer said, one medical intern and 21 policemen from District Police Lines, (DPL) Kulgam were also among the new Covid-19 patients detected at CD Hospital since Wednesday evening.

“Out of 701 samples tested at CD Hospital, 31 came positive for the new virus. Those tested positive include 21 from DPL Kulgam,” he said.

A medical intern at Psychiatry department of GMC Srinagar and two expecting mothers from Anantnag district are also included in the new cases tested positive for Covid-19 at CD Hospital, said the nodal officer.

Medical Superintendent SKIMS Soura, Dr Farooq A Jan told Kashmir Reader that 14 persons tested positive for coronavirus at the premier institute on Thursday out of 1900 samples tested.

“Seven of the new Covid-19 cases belong to different villages of Kupwara district followed by Kulgam with three cases and two each from Srinagar and Ganderbal,” he said.

Meanwhile, four cases were also reported at SKIMS Bemina among 400 samples tested since Wednesday evening.

“Of the four new cases detected at SKIMS Bemina, two are from Soibugh, one each from Naru and Loolipora villages of Budgam,” said Dr Reyaz Untoo, Principal of SKIMS Medical College, Bemina.

Manzoor ul-Hassan