India locks down Kashmir region on coronavirus fears

Friday, 20 March 2020 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Commuters are stopped by security force personnel after the government imposed restriction on movement as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Srinagar March 19, 2020 - Reuters

Srinagar/New Delhi (Reuters): India blocked roads in Kashmir on Thursday after the insurgency-torn region reported its first case of coronavirus, as several other parts of the country imposed restrictions on public gatherings in attempts to prevent its spread.

New cases in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are all accelerating, with the total across the region nearing 600. Six people have died in the region after contracting the virus.

Authorities worry that these countries could be especially at risk should the virus begin to spread locally, due to poor health facilities and infrastructure.

In Kashmir, dozens of people told Reuters they had been prevented from leaving their neighborhoods on Thursday because roads were blocked by police and paramilitary units.Srinagar’s senior superintendent of police Haseeb Mughal told Reuters that road blockades across the valley had been imposed to prevent the spread of the virus.

Muslim-majority Kashmir, also claimed by India’s arch-rival Pakistan, has been relatively unaffected by the virus, reporting its first case on Wednesday evening. But the picturesque valley of seven million is one of most militarised places on earth due a decades-long insurgency against Indian rule, and its residents have been subject to prolonged curbs on freedom of movement.

An internet shutdown that began in August following sweeping constitutional changes in Kashmir has only just been eased.