Shopian: The second wave of Covid-19 has almost gone out of Shopian, with only 10 active cases in the district now, though on Friday two more cases were reported.

The last Covid related death in the district was reported a month ago, a senior health official said. Since then, all the patients have recovered except ten. The official also said that currently the positivity rate in the district is nearly zero.

“Strict adherence to Covid-19 protocols and following of SOPs are among the reasons the district has witnessed least number of cases in the second Covid wave,” said Chief Medical Officer of the district, Dr Arshad Hussain Tak.

When asked if it was time to open educational institutions in the district, he said it was a decision for the government to take.

“Even today we attended a meeting in this regard. The government is watching the situation keenly but I think opening of educational institutions will be decided by the government for the whole of Kashmir, not for particular districts,” he said.

Since the outbreak of Covid pandemic last year, 5,565 persons have been contaminated with the virus in Shopian, with 58 deaths recorded in total.

According to official data, 100 percent people in the age group of 45 and above have now been vaccinated and 18 percent in the age group of 18 to 45 have also been vaccinated in the district. Shopian was the first district in Jammu and Kashmir which vaccinated 100 per cent of the population above 45.

Raashid Hassan