A team out to collect Covid-19 swab samples for testing was attacked in Rachhin village of Pakhowal block of Ludhiana on Thursday morning, with at least one multipurpose health worker sustaining an injury in the attack. The injured man, identified as Suraaj Mohammed, sustained injuries to his forehead and was rushed to the Community Health Centre (CHC) Pakhowal for treatment. Later, in a statement, Mohammed told police that he was attacked with a brick by a man, identified as one Jaspreet Singh, while he was sensitising villagers to come forward for Covid-19 testing. Mohammed stated that Singh was reluctant to give his sample for Covid testing and suddenly turned violent and attacked him by throwing a brick at him. He added that the brick struck him on his forehead leaving a wound. The police have registered an FIR against the accused under various sections of IPC. Deputy Commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma termed the incident as unfortunate and said such acts were highly unwarranted and strict action will be taken against those trying to derail the efforts of the government to contain the virus spread. He further urged rural folk to shun hesitancy for testing and immunization as these were the most effective measures to keep Covid-19 at bay.
