Kashmir on Friday witnessed tightened COVID-19 curfew and there were no congregational prayers at main mosques.
In Srinagar the restrictions were also in view of the death anniversary of Mirwaiz Molvi Mohammad Farooq and Abdul Ghani Lone.
Reports said that strict curbs were put in place and public movement toward old Srinagar was restricted. Police and paramilitary personnel were deployed in large numbers to enforce the lockdown restrictions. Security forces have erected barricades and laid concertina wires to thwart the public movement, reports said.
Police here said that no untoward incident was reported from any part of Kashmir. “It was all peaceful.”
Reports of restrictions also came from Sopore, Baramulla,
Bandipora and Kupwara in north and Shopian, Anantnag, Pulwama and Kulgam in south Kashmir. Shops and business establishments were closed and roads wore a deserted look in these districts, where police parties were patrolling their respective areas to ensure strict implementation of the lockdown. Business and other activities remained crippled in central Kashmir districts of Budgam and Ganderbal, where roads have been closed with barbed wires in most parts to prevent movement of vehicles and people.
Last Sunday, the LG administration extended the ‘COVID curfew’ by another week till May 24 in all 20 districts in the Union Territory though essential services were exempted from the lockdown. This was the fourth successive extension of COVID curfew in the valley since April 29. The latest extension came in the backdrop of unabated rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in J&K, particularly the summer capital Srinagar, which has recorded the major chunk of positive cases during the last over a month.