Covid helpline numbers not working in Jammu areas
Dinesh Manhotra
Tribune News Service
Jammu, September 11
The Jammu and Kashmir administration’s fight against Covid has been exposed as all telephone helpline numbers for the Jammu region are non-functional.
All four dedicated helpline telephone numbers which the government is regularly publicising in its official Covid bulletin are “temporarily out of service”.
“Since Thursday evening, I have been trying all four helpline numbers to seek some guidance, but none of the telephones is functional,” regretted Rajinder Kumar, a resident of Rampura, Gandhi Nagar, whose daughter has developed Covid symptoms. Ultimately, the poor vegetable seller was forced to go to a private hospital for medical examination of his daughter.
The J&K Government, in its official bulletin every day, issued six telephone numbers, one Jammu-based number for the residents of UT, three for the residents of the Jammu province and two from the Kashmir valley.
Neither the dedicated coronavirus helpline number for the UT is working nor three others, exclusively dedicated for the Jammu province.
Only two Kashmir-based numbers are working.
Ironically, the balance of the dedicated UT Covid helpline number (0191-2549676) is Rs 353 only and the due date is September 23, but is still “temporarily out of service”. It is widely believed that this number has been deliberately made non-functional.
Similarly, other three dedicated helpline numbers for Jammu are “temporarily out of service”. The balance of the first number 0191-2520982 is Rs 1,178, balance of 0191-2674444 is Rs 1,416 and the balance of the last helpline number 0191-2674115 is Rs 3,854.
Even on Friday evening, the J&K Government, in its official bulletin, asked people to avail benefits of these “non-functional” helpline numbers in case of any help.
