Srinagar : Amid the coronavirus scare, Srinagar Mayor and Peoples Conference Chairman Junaid Azim Mattu has called for the cancellation of Khelo India’s first winter games chapter, which starts in Jammu and Kashmir’s Gulmarg town on Saturday.
Taking to social networking site Twitter, Junaid Azim Mattu wrote: “In view of the #COVID2019 situation, I personally believe the ‘Khelo India’ sports event in Gulmarg should be cancelled. I have conveyed this to the administration as well as the Lieutenant Governor of J&K, Sh. G. C. Murmu. Precautions are vital(sic).”
Former PDP president Mehbooba Mufti’s daughter, Iltija Mufti, has also criticised the administration for allowing the sports event.
“At a time when Coronavirus has caused a global health crisis & EU – India summit deferred, J&K admin is organising a massive sports event in Gulmarg. Why should Kashmiris bear a staggering cost for showcasing ‘normalcy’?” Iltija wrote on her mothers Twitter handle.
A number of events related to Holi and Women’s Day celebrations were cancelled while the UGC asked universities to avoid large gatherings as precautionary measures against coronavirus, as a man from Delhi tested positive on Friday, the 31st such case in the country.
Meanwhile, all primary schools in Jammu and Samba districts closed till March 31.
The coronavirus outbreak originated in China’s Wuhan in December and has spread to over 60 nations, killing more than 3,000 people and infecting over 90,000.
