Chandigarh, May 1, 2021 (Yes Punjab News)
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today demanded immediate recruitment of medical staff to run hundreds of ventilators which were either not installed or not operational due to lack of staff even as it accused chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh of leaving Punjab and Punjabis to their fate to bear the brunt of the the second Coronavirus outbreak on their own.
Asserting that there seemed to be no government in the State, former MP Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra said “how else can you explain the fact that ventilators which have arrived in the State since months have not been installed till now. Similarly the government has failed to recruit staff to run more than 300 ventilators despite having ample time to do so.
There cannot be a bigger proof of the complete abdication of responsibility by any chief minister. Capt Amarinder Singh has lost the moral right to rule the State and should put in his papers immediately”.
Prof Chandumajra said this was not the sole case of “criminal negligence” of the chief minister and his ministerial colleague – Health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu. “The Congress government failed to place orders for Covid vaccine in time due to which there is a severe shortage of vaccines. Similarly despite having more then one year at its disposal the government did not take any effort to augment the State’s oxygen manufacturing capacity”.
Prof Chandumajra said instead of getting together to combat the scrouge of Covid, the top leadership of the State was engaged in a fight for the top chair. “The chief minister is engaged in a political battle with his bête noir Navjot Sidhu and has no time to tackle the ongoing health emergency in the State. By doing this Capt Amarinder Singh has emerged as the modern day Nero”.
The SAD leader asked the State government to take all necessary steps to upgrade medical facilities in the State. He said the government could also take over private hospitals by giving them their fixed charges in order to increase the number of dedicated Covid beds in the State.
Prof Chandumajra meanwhile also condemned the central government for encouraging commercialisation of the vaccine procurement process by saying companies should not be allowed to sell the same vaccine at different rates to the central and State governments. He also asked the centre to ensure distribution of the vaccine from the central quota in a transparent manner to the States so that it is not charged with politicising a human tragedy.
He said there were instances of States where the incidence of Covid was more but they were not getting the appropriate Covid doses from the centre. He said the central government should increase supply of vaccine to Punjab keeping in view the high rate of incidence as well as fatality rate.
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