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Bhubaneswar: With the twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack witnessing an alarming rise in Covid cases over the past few days, senior BJP leader Bijoy Mohapatra today pointed at the crumbling healthcare services citing how Covid-infected patients are struggling to find hospital beds even during emergency situations.
At a time when infections are rising putting facilities at the risk of being overrun, the government instead of strengthening its management at the hospitals, has shifted all its focus towards enhancing enforcement drives to penalize the violators, alleged Mohapatra.
“The government officials disregarded all the advice and proposals that were suggested for efficient crisis management. Nobody expected that situation in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack would be so unnerving. People are losing their family members because of the unavailability of beds in Covid hospitals here. The government should seriously look into increasing the bed capacity facilitated with ventilators and other equipment,” the BJP leader said.
He further highlighted that only a few beds are available in all hospitals in twin cities are combined, adding that the administration should come up with at least 1000 more beds at Covid facilities to redress complaints of non-availability of beds and ensure that patients are not deprived of timely medical care. Only a few beds are reserved for extreme emergency cases, he said.
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Responding to the criticism, BJD leader Amar Satpathy appealed not to politicize Covid crisis or use it as an opportunity to settle political scores.
It is noteworthy to mention that Mohapatra’s allegations poured in a day after CM Naveen Patnaik, highlighting feedback on enforcement activities in the State, said to the DGP that strict adherence of Covid protocol in the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Commissionerate area is not encouraging.
In a review meeting chaired by DGP Abhay today, it was decided to intensify decided to intensity enforcement in market areas of the Twin City and specified hot spots and seek public co-operation through an awareness drive. It was also decided that twin city police will collect more PPE kits and face shields from the State Central Store and encourage their personnel to use the same. “Good care will be taken of police personnel infected with Covid. This apart, Bhubaneswar will be divided into three zones for purpose of Covid enforcement with one DCP looking after each zone,” the meeting finalised.
50 More Officers, 5 Platoons Of Armed Police To Enforce COVID-19 Guidelines In Twin City
Clearing the air on the ban on movement of patients to Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy said, "Government has created advanced Covid hospital facilities in the Twin City for people of the entire State. The government is only regulating to ensure that the patients travel safely and with proper medical advice arrangements and oxygen support etc. Carelessness in these matters in the past has affected the patients seriously. Referral of the patients with proper medical support shall be helpful in further management of the disease at referral points and shall save their life.”
Similarly, Additional Chief Secretary Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra said that there is no ban in referring the Covid patients from different districts to the Special Covid Hospitals at Cuttack and Bhubaneswar for critical care.
There is NO ban on any patient coming to Cuttack & Bhubaneswar for critical care treatment: Adl chief secretary Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra #Odisha #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/rRw456ebvs
— OTV (@otvnews) September 16, 2020
