Srinagar,  Director of the prestigious Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Srinagar, Dr. Parvaiz Koul said on Monday that there was no need to panic because of the increase in Covid-19 cases noticed recently in the union territories of J&K and Ladakh.

Dr. Koul, while addressing the public concerns over the recent upward trend in the Covid cases, told IANS, "There is no need for alarm or panic over the recent increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in J&K and Ladakh.

"Yes, there has been an upward trend in the viral infection during the recent days, but there have been no hospital admissions or mortalities during this period.

"In fact, the institute of health matrix and evaluation (IHME) Washington, of which I am also a collaborator for global burden of disease (GBD) studies, has evaluated and said that there is no imminent threat of Covid-19 in J&K and Ladakh (Period up to which evaluation was made) till September 2022.

"All we need is to take caution like we have to do in case of all viral infections.

"Just adhere to the SoPs and that is enough. Wash your hands regularly with soap, maintain social distance and avoid highly crowded places. That is enough," Dr. Koul, who is himself a leading Pulmonologist, said.