Follow­ing the develo­pment health offici­als stop taking sample­s from suspec­ted corona­virus patien­ts in Occupi­ed Kashmi­rHealth officials in Indian Occupied Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K) stopped taking samples from suspected coronavirus patients after a senior official ‘mysteriously’ diverted 5,000 test kits to Jammu. Indian newspaper The Hindu reported that a senior health official bypassed the orders and diverted a Srinagar-bound consignment of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), carrying the kits. The report quoting official sources said that the alarm was raised by top health officials in Srinagar when a cargo plane arrived in Srinagar Tuesday morning and failed to deliver the testing kits “desperately required in the valley”. The newspaper said that it was only following the intervention of Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam that 4,000 test kits were airlifted from Jammu to Srinagar around 4pm on Tuesday. The report quoting sources said that Jitendra Mehta of the National Health Mission, who advises Divisional Commissioner Pandurang K. Pole on procurements, diverted the testing kits.

Source: The Express Tribune April 16, 2020 21:45 UTC