Jammu, J&K government has earmarked 11 hospitals as COVID-19 hospitals and also reserved 3,400 beds for treatment and quarantine of affected people in the union territory.

"8 hospitals in Kashmir and 3 in Jammu to be exclusive COVID hospitals. 2,400 treatment beds and 1,000 additional quarantine beds were earmarked too. Adequate capacity to handle any possible rush.CS chairs meeting to finalise arrangements", government spokesman, Rohit Kansal said.

These decisions were taken at a high level meeting chaired by UT Chief Secretary, B.V.R. Subrahmaniyan in Jammu.

The necessity to keep exclusive hospitals for the treatment of affected COVID-19 patients has arisen because the bigger hospitals like the super specialty Sher-e-Kashmir institute of medical sciences (SKIMS), SMHS hospital in the Valley and the SMGS hospital and super specialty Jammu medical college hospital cannot be reserved for the virus treatment exclusively.

Doctors at these hospitals say that would bring normal healthcare operations like emergency surgeries, heart patient treatment, trauma treatment and other crucial operations to a halt.

Hospitals now earmarked exclusively for COVID-19 treatment will not attend to any medical emergency henceforth other that virus control.