Kashmir health workers are braving snow, cold waves to vaccinate kids in this remote village

Srinagar: Health workers in Jammu and Kashmir are beating cold waves and sub-zero temperatures to administer precaution doses of Covid vaccines to the senior beneficiaries as well as those in the 15-18 age group in the snow-covered Gurez valley

In order to assure Covid vaccines to the citizens, officials of the Kashmir health department are walking and climbing over 10-12 kilometres by foot every day to reach the far-flung areas of Gurez.

“We are on foot since the vaccination drive is announced and our area Gurez is fully covered with snow but despite that, we are making it sure that every villager get vaccinated,” Bashir Teero. a health worker said

“Our team is going to extremely remote areas, adjacent to the line of control, that require us to climb Snow Mountains around 10 to 12 kilometres and takes 7-8 but our only target is to keep people away from this virus,” he added.

Around 700 doses of Covid vaccines have been administered in the 15-17 age group in the past couple of days, and efforts to vaccinate the left-out young population and above 60 ages are being accelerated.

People in the area are grateful to the health workers who are constantly putting their lives in danger to vaccinate them despite all the odds.

“I am thankful to BMO who had come here to vaccinate our children despite heavy snowfall. They have put their lives at risk we are thankful to them,” said a local.

Gurez is one of the remote areas of Kashmir valley situated at 2400 meters above sea level. It has a population of over 98 thousand.

The valley is home to the Shina tribe and due to heavy snowfall, the surface link with Gurez is closed. Only chopper service is operative thrice a week for Gurez main town.

The area is just a few kilometres away from the line of control in the Bandipora district and this time Gurez is under heavy snow from 4 to 8 feet snow.