How Nursath broke myths on Covid vaccine in Kashmir?

Story by  Aasha Khosa | Posted by  Aasha Khosa • 2 Years ago
Tehsildar Nusrath Aziz with locals in a Budgam village
Tehsildar Nusrath Aziz with locals in a Budgam village

 

New Delhi

In the summer of 2020, Nusrath Aziz, tehsildar, Budgam, central Kashmir, was looking after thousands of quarantined students, tourists and others, who were returning home or caught in the Covid-19 lockdown y when she was told about a woman tourist who had locked herself in a hotel room.

When hotel staff informed this Kashmiri administrator about this strange woman, she got worried and knocked at her door. The tourist, an Indian from Uttar Pradesh shouted from inside and said she didn't want to speak, see or meet anyone. She was even refusing the food served by the hotel. All arrangements were paid by the government.

Nusrath again reached her next day and finally, this woman opened the window of her bathroom. She had used the bathing stool to reach the window to Nusrath. She spoke rudely and told Nusrath she was managing with some coffee that she made inside the room and ate stocked food and nobody should bother her.

Nusrath coordinating with Army and other Authorities in the field

Finally, after a few days’ Nusrath had to forcibly enter her room. “There were books everywhere and I presumed she was a writer or a book lover,” Nusrath said. The woman had come to Gulmarg and since there were no flights and nobody was sent without testing for the virus she was stuck. She had tested negative for the Covid and finally sent home. “She became a friend and then admitted to me that she had run out of money and she didn’t want to face others,” Nusrath said.

Nusrath Aziz, a mother of three children in her forties, was recently conferred Appreciation Corona Warrior award for her outstanding role in fighting Covid-19 from an NGO, International Human Rights Organisation.

Nusrath was honoured for her outstanding work including calling virtual meetings amid the Coronavirus scare to ensure the vaccination drive was a success.’ Receiving the award in Srinagar Nusrath said, “I dedicate this award to my administration family - from peon to driver - who used to accompany me from place to place at a time when people preferred to stay at their homes.”

Nusrath Aziz receiving the award in Srinagar 

The NGO said her efforts saved the lives of thousands and thousands of people in Budgam that lacked in health infrastructure. “District Budgam is lacking in every field but it was quite good to see Tehsildar Mrs Nusrat Aziz was performing well even when people preferred to sit at home,” Javed Iqbal, leader of NGO said. The organization says it will honour more covid warriors in Kashmir in the coming days.

Speaking on the occasion, Nusrath Aziz, said the 2020 Covid wave was very challenging since there were no protocols and precedents.”We all administrators would be out all the day regulating peoples movements and making arrangements.” She said. She was in the thick of the situation as the Srinagar international airport was her responsibility.'

Humza, the 5-year-old son of Nusrath Aziz

In the second wave of Covid-19, the situation is much better as all the systems and protocols are streamlined. However, the challenge of dealing with vaccine hesitancy is the most formidable one in this phase.

She had adopted the approach of identifying villages with higher vaccine hesitancy and visiting them without any security. “I would speak with the women and tell them that I am a mother and have taken the vaccination and that has enabled me to move around helping others. There were rumours about vaccine impacting the health of the people.” Her approach of visiting each village motivated the public and today Budgam had nearly 100 per cent vaccine coverage.”

Nusrath with other Covid warriors - her roving vaccination team

However, behind this success story in vaccination in Jammu and Kashmir is the hard work and initiative of administrators like Nusrath Aziz. “Initial days were full of uncertainty, everyone was anxious,” she says. In fact, her most challenging responsibility was dealing with thousands of students and others who were returning home by flights and all of them had to be screened. ”Those days, I would be in PPE kit all day and return home very late,” she said.

Her three children were explained that their mother was saving lives and they should not go close to her. “I had to remain in isolation; the elder ones understood but it was painful for me to keep my five-year-old son Hamza away from myself.”

With a supportive family – Nusrath’s husband is also in the revenue service of the J&K government – Nusrath plunged the whole hog into her work. “Those days, I had lost count of t time,” she says.