The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday slammed the TRS government for “not taking steps to deal with the current shortage of drugs like Remidesvir, oxygen supply to hospitals and shortage of beds to treat COVID-19 patients” in both government and private healthcare facilities.
Party president Bandi Sanjay Kumar found fault with Health Minister Eatala Rajender blaming the Centre for the “shortages” and accused the government of “incompetence” in handling the production and distribution of the essential commodities necessary during the raging second wave of the pandemic.
“Has the government conducted a single review meeting at the level of the Chief Minister to decide on how to handle the current emergency situation? There is no action against those selling drugs at high prices in the black market. The government has left public health and people to their fate just like it did during the first wave last year,” he charged.
The government healthcare facilities are running short of personnel, infrastructure and funds to take care of the rising cases. It is the contractual employees who have been bearing the brunt and they have to be provided with necessary safety gear including kits and N-95 masks, said the BJP leader.
Vaccine hesitancy among the population is also because the top leadership has not bothered to allay the fears of the people with effective communication. Mr. Sanjay Kumar also advised the government not to mislead the people by giving false information on the number of positive cases and mortalities as the “reality is there for everyone to see” across the districts too.
Senior leader K. Laxman also said priority should be on enhancing bed capacity and pressing more personnel into service. “Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had promised to spend ₹1,000 crore on COVID-19 treatment but how much has been release till date? The Government should hold an all party meeting to discuss the steps needed to control this pandemic and ensure Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS) Gachibowli is functioning to full capacity,” he said.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Home G. Kishan Reddy, who took the second dose of Covishield on Monday, urged citizens aged 45 years and above to take available vaccines against COVID-19 infection. “It does not matter if it is Covaxin or Covisheild as both are working very well so please take whatever is available at the designated government or private healthcare centre,” he said.
The Minister was talking to the media at the Gandhi Hospital vaccination centre after taking his second dose of Covishield vaccine as per the given designated time-table. “I am having no discomfort and I am absolutely fine. The hospital superintendent and the deputy superintendent too has taken the second dose along with me,” he said. Mr. Reddy said eligible people even having diabetes and blood pressure should not hesitate to take the vaccine.
