Didi briefs PM as people struggle to find hospital
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday about the state's preparedness to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic. While Mamata spoke of figures of 16,000 tests being done a day at 56 laboratories, 81 COVID hospitals and 106 safe homes where people can be quarantined, the reality on the ground, however, is different.
If reports from various corners of the state are to be believed, people are struggling to get hospital admission even if they are prepared to pay a huge sum. This, coupled with the high cost of treatment at hospitals, has prompted many private facilities to come up with home care packages. Mamata, however, said, the treatment for Covid is free. "There are 81 Covid hospitals. Medicines are totally free. The government has also taken up some private hospitals."
Hours before the CM interacted with the PM through video-conference, a grim story emerged. Madhav Narayan Dutta, a patient with breathing difficulties and fever died as no one helped him move into an ambulance from Bongaon Hospital in North 24 Parganas district on Saturday. His wife was seen desperately trying to help the man, while the medical staff stood as mute spectators. Dutta's brother-in-law finally arrived and was asked to take the patient to Kolkata. However, it was too late by then.
Mamata spoke about tele-medicine facilities to help patients get treated at home and also shared information on a centralized call centre service. This too is contrasted by ground reports, which say people often find it difficult to get through to these numbers, and sometimes even after that, little help is offered. A 71-year-old man's body was kept in a freezer for 44 hours by his family members earlier this month in Maniktala, Kolkata, as government authorities were not taking the body away.
While Mamata mentioned that the state had spent Rs 2500 crore on Covid19, she also spoke about the damage done by cyclone Amphan and requested PM Modi to clear the funds of Rs 53,000 crore, including GST compensation of Rs 4135 crore. "You had come here after cyclone Amphan and your Central team had visited too after that. They had submitted a report of losses of Rs 35,000crore. But we have not received anything apart from the Rs1000 crore that you had initially granted," she said. "What would happen if there is a natural calamity in future?"