Maha govt urges Centre to restore supply of masks, ventilators, PPE kits
Amid rising Covid-19 cases across the state, the Maharashtra government will soon write a letter to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging to reconsider the Centre’s decision not to provide masks, ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE) kits. The government will call upon the Centre to restore the supply as it was necessary in combating coronavirus. This was informed by the Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope who discussed with Union Minister Prakash Javadekar, the recent communication received from the Centre to the state in this regard.
Tope said the Centre’s decision not to provide masks, ventilators and PPE kits in the present situation was not appropriate and therefore a letter will be sent to restore the supply to the state.
The minister admitted that the virus infection was increasing due to unlocking, lifting of district ban, withdrawal of e-pass and an increase in office attendance. ‘’There is a penalty for not wearing a mask, yet 25 to 30 percent of people do not wear a mask. The government has collected a fine of Rs 1 crore for not wearing a mask in Pune alone,’’ he said. According to him, ‘’Swastha Maharashtra Mohim’’ (Healthy Maharashtra Campaign) will be implemented from September 15 which emphasises on tracing and testing.
In a related development, Tope on Sunday launched Tele-ICU service at Aurangabad, Jalna and Solapur to prevent deaths due to coronavirus pandemic. He recalled that the government had launched the first Tele-ICU service in Bhiwandi.
‘’The use of state-of-theart technology for health facilities is the need of the hour especially when the Covid-19 mortality rate is a matter of concern. The government aims to reduce the death rate below one percent. The TeleI-CU technology will help reduce the mortality rate if critical patients in the corona are treated under expert guidance,’’ said Tope. He informed that the Tele-ICU facility was provided through the Social Responsibility Fund (CSR) through Mediscape India Foundation.