On Day 14 of lockdown, Valley remains quiet, desolate

Tribune News Service

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Srinagar, April 2

The unprecedented lockdown of Kashmir valley entered its 14th day today as the region looked desolate and shocked residents continued to count the growing number of patients testing positive for the contagious Covid-19 infection.

Roads across the region remained deserted due to the lockdown. The only highway – which is usually jam-packed and connects south Kashmir with the northern district also remained desolate.

In Srinagar, the roads remain blocked with rolls of concertina wires and checkpoints are manned by policemen and paramilitary personnel. The police ask a few questions and depending on the answers let the drivers go or turn back.

“Even in this time of crisis, the people are not cooperating,” a constable at a checkpoint in Srinagar’s Batamaloo neighbourhood said. “People still don’t understand the seriousness of the situation,” he said, standing in a green surgical mask, which covered his nose and mouth.

Along the Boulevard road that circles around Dal Lake and is the base for tourists arriving in Srinagar, the businesses remain shut and the policemen and paramilitaries dot the deserted lake bank.

The lockdown has been almost complete in Kashmir valley for the past 12 days since the first case of a woman from Srinagar tested positive for Covid-19.

Since then, the people have mostly stayed at home, watching hours of news and spending time counting an increase in number of patients testing positive.

Firdous Ahmad (65), a retired government employee from Srinagar’s Bemina neighbourhood, said, “ I have not left my home for the past 12 days and that has frustrated me,” he said.

The picture of the funeral of the man, who was the first fatality caused by the Covid-19 virus, has become one of the defining images of the latest crisis. The picture clicked in north Kashmir’s Sopore town showed several masked men in protective gear offering the last prayers for the dead patient.

“Dying of the virus and having this kind of a funeral is scary,” a police official commented about the funeral.