Fire inside house: Retired DSP, 5 others of family die of asphyxiation in J&K
Six persons of a family, including two children, died of asphyxiation when a fire erupted in a house in Jammu's Kathua early Wednesday, officials said.
Amidst the surge in Covid-19 cases, traders in Jammu on Friday defied the weekend shutdown on non-essentials by keeping their establishments open, whereas commercial activity was shut in the Kashmir valley.
The chief secretary, who is chairman of the state executive committee of disaster management, had on 23 January ordered that besides the daily night curfew from 9 pm to 6 am, “there shall also be complete restriction bon non-essential movement in the entire UT of J&K from every Friday 2 pm to Monday 6 am”.
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However, the order was observed in defiance here, whereas the shops were shut in Kashmir at 2 pm.
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Sheikh Ashiq Ahmad, president of the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry, reacted sharply to the “double standards” of the administration and said why the restrictions were being enforced only in the Kashmir valley.
The Jammu Chamber of Commerce had questioned the restrictions at a time when the traders had already suffered financial losses during the earlier lockdown. Arun Gupta, chief of the chamber, discussed the issue with the authorities and described the fresh restrictions as unjustified and arbitrary.
The traders here kept their shops open after 2 pm and large numbers of people were seen moving in the market places. Sheikh Ashiq Ahmad said that shops were shut in Srinagar at 2 pm as police vehicles moved in asking traders to pull down the shutters.
Sheikh said that as Covid-19 positive cases continue to spike across J&K, the government in order to contain the contagion continues with weekend lockdown. The fresh lockdown, however, has again adversely impacted the livelihood of daily wagers and businesses community.
He urged the administration to keep the livelihood of the business community in mind before taking any future decision and tackle the situation in consultation with traders, industry and business community.
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