With the number of quarantined people in Jammu and Kashmir doubling over the past 24 hours, the administration Wednesday ordered the immediate closure of all educational institutions across the Union Territory till March 31. However, Board and other competitive examinations will be conducted as per schedule, said National Health Mission Director Bhupinder Kumar. A total of 980 people were placed under quarantine by Wednesday evening, against 500 the previous evening. Of them, a dozen were kept under hospital quarantine on Wednesday, which was three times more than Tuesday. Similarly, the number of people kept under home quarantine also rose to 968 from 491 in the past 24 hours. A total of 1,211 people were listed for observation on Wednesday Principal Secretary Planning and Monitoring Department Rohit Kansal, also the spokesperson of the UT administration, tweeted that cinema halls and Anganwadi centres in five districts— Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Udhampur, and Reasi— will be closed till March 31.
