65-year-old religious preacher dies of coronavirus, first death in Kashmir

A 65-year-old religious preacher who had tested positive for the coronavirus disease this week died in a Srinagar hospital early Thursday, the first Covid-19-linked death in Jammu and Kashmir.

A government official said the man died at Srinagar’s Chest Disease (CD) hospital.

Srinagar Mayor Junaid Azim Mattu confirmed the death on Twitter minutes later. “As we share the sad news of our first #Covid19 fatality, my heart goes out to the family of the deceased. We stand with you and share your grief,” he tweeted, reminding people that they need to cooperate to break the chain of the infection.