New Delhi, May 12 (IANS): Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh, here on Tuesday, commended the arrangements made by the J&K and the Ladakh administrations for passengers arriving in the Shramik special trains.

The Indian Railways resumed special train services in a graded manner on Tuesday. The first special train from Delhi to Jammu Tawi will run on May 13 and return on May 14.

The Minister said over 50,000 people, including students, stranded across the country had returned to J&K, and the administration did a fine job of testing them, making arrangements for their quarantine and sending them home.

He complimented the Deputy Commissioners of all J&K and Ladakh districts during an interaction for sustained and commendable efforts during the Covid-19 crisis.

Singh said the management was much better than other states and UTs. The doubling time of coronavirus cases in J&K was better than even the national average, he said and expressed satisfaction over the large number of Covid-19 tests being done.

He urged the Deputy Commissioners to reopen markets in a staggered manner, with different shops opening at different times on different days to keep the social distancing norms.