Mamata Banerjee urges PM Modi to release funds to help state fight Covid

Kolkata, July 27: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asked the Centre to clear all financial dues of the state to help it fight the Covid-19 pandemic effectively.

Ms Banerjee, during an online programme where Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated new testing facilities in West Bengal, Maharashtra and UP, also sought the creation of a separate fund for the combating the disease.

She also said that the money from the state’s disaster relief fund was being used for rehabilitation work after cyclone Amphan.

“I would request the Central government to clear the financial dues of the state immediately. We are yet to get our dues of `53,000 crore. If we utilise all money from the state disaster relief fund for post-cyclone restoration works, how are we supposed to fight the pandemic,” the CM said during the online programme.

Cyclone Amphan had struck West Bengal on may 20, leaving behind a trail of destruction

“There is a need for a separate fund to fight the pandemic. I would request you (the PM) to look into it,” she added.

Meanwhile in a first, more Covid-19 patients were discharged from hospitals on a single-day in West Bengal than the

We are yet to get our dues of `53,000 crore. If we utilise all money from the state disaster relief fund for postcyclone restoration works, how are we supposed to fight the pandemic. — Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal CM

number of new cases detected, as per the state health department bulletin issued on Monday.

The state reported 2,112 new cases, while 2,166 people were discharged from different hospitals in the last 24 hours, the bulletin said.

The total number of cases rose to 60,830 with the detection of the fresh infections, it said.

Further, 39 patients died of Covid-19, taking the toll to 1,411. There are 19,502 active cases in the state at present, it added.

So far, 39,917 people have recovered.

The state’s discharge rate improved to 65.62 per cent with the fresh recoveries.