Minister opens mother-child care unit, distancing norms flouted

TARN TARAN : Punjab health and family welfare minister Balbir Singh Sidhu on Monday inaugurated the newly constructed maternity childcare unit at the Tarn Taran civil hospital even as it is already being used as a 100bedded isolation ward for Covid-19 patients for the last three months.

In the unit, constructed at the cost of Rs 6 crore, nine coronavirus patients are currently being treated.

Also, at the time of the inauguration of the ward, considered a sensitive zone for contracting the virus, more than 100 people gathered throwing the social- distancing norms to the wind.

Besides the health minister, three local MLAs— Dharambir Agnihotri, Harminder Singh Gill and Santokh Singh Bhalaipur— and senior officials of civil and police administration, including deputy commissioner Kulwant Singh and senior superintendent of police (SSP) Dhruv Dahiya, were also present on the occasion.

This comes soon after Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh issued a complete ban on all public gatherings, while restricting social gatherings to five and marriages/other social functions to 30 instead of the current 50.

“The ward will not be operational as maternity childcare unit till the pandemic ebbs,” said civil surgeon Dr Anoop Kumar.

The minister said, “We are trying our best to maintain social distancing, but people don’t follow it sometimes. Also, there was no Covid-19 patient in the unit at the time of inauguration.”

The minister said around 4,000 posts of doctors and paramedical staff will be filled by September to accomplish the ‘Mission Fateh’ campaign started by the state government against Covid-19.

BALBIR SINGH SIDHU SAID 4,000 POSTS OF DOCTORS, PARAMEDICAL STAFF WILL BE FILLED BY SEPTEMBER