Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Friday asked the Haryana government to provide adequate protection to doctors and others who are at the frontline of the battle against coronavirus.
Citing instances from Haryana in which some doctors, nurses and paramedical staff have been exposed to risks due to the alleged shortage of Personal Protection Equipment, Surjewala said his party has been regularly warning the government about the need to protect the frontline workers.
In government hospitals too, there is dearth of Personal Protection Equipment. Recently, a doctor working at PGIMS in Rohtak wrote in detail on her social media account raising the issue of shortage of PPE and said when doctors like her will be no more, these equipment should be sent to their grave, Surjewala, a former MLA from Kaithal, told media via video link.
He claimed that pressure was built by authorities on the woman doctor and she was forced to delete her social media account the same day she had raised the concern.
He cited another example in which a woman government doctor working in a civil hospital in Gurgaon contracted the infection in the absence of adequate personal protection equipment".
The woman doctor was discharged from the hospital after recovery.
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Another nurse in Panchkula tested positive for COVID-19. In Rohtak medical college, a doctor had to wear a helmet while treating patients in the absence of PPE and in Panchkula doctors and nurses are wearing raincoats to treat patients, Surjewala said.
When a reporter asked if there was a delayed response on the Centre's part to deal with the situation, Surjewala replied, On February 12, (Congress leader)Rahul Gandhi warned that coronavirus was going to hit the country in a big way and said necessary measures should be taken by the government to combat it.
But at that time the government was busy in welcoming the US president and holding a big rally for him in Gujarat. Later, also the government remained busy in some other issues," he said.
The government took it lightly and instead accused Congress that it was trying to spread fear. But again we humbly told them that the issue concerns the nation not any party, he added.
Earlier in the day, Haryana's Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Rajiv Arora had said that there was no dearth of Personal Protective Equipment for doctors, nurses and paramedics.
Meanwhile, Surjewala hit out at the Khattar government on the farmers' issue.
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had recently asked farmers to store their wheat and mustard in their houses in view of the lockdown situation, saying wheat procurement would start on April 20, while mustard would be procured from April 15.
For wheat and mustard procurement, the government seems to have come up with no planning, no preparation and no arrangement. Wheat and Rabi crops cannot be purchased in this scenario. The government is also rubbing salt on their wounds asking them to store produce in their homes, Surjewala said.
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