BENGALURU: Kunigal MLA Dr Ranganath D is on hunger strike since Thursday morning, demanding that the State government supply more more medical oxygen, medicines and staffers to fight Covid-19 to his constituency, which has seen a sudden spike in deaths.
Manning Kunigal General Hospital, which has about 50 oxygen beds but few staffers, Dr Ranganath is himself triaging and doing the rounds of the ICU. He has been firefighting on a daily basis in the suburban constituency of Kunigal, an hour's drive from Bengaluru. There are about 100 patients occupying general (non-oxygen) beds.
The number of patients here is only increasing, but infrastructure is falling far short of requirement. "This is an ICU I helped set up,'' he said, pointing to the three-bed ICU in the hospital. "I have to literally fight with the district administration in Tumakuru every day for Remdesivir that my patients need," he said. Ranganath, who had tested positive for Covid some months ago, is undaunted by the problems, and no one is turned away for want of oxygen or Remdesivir.
About 10 hours away from Bengaluru, MLA Dr Ajay Singh, son of former Chief Minister Dharam Singh, has rapidly put together a makeshift 10-bed hospital in his hometown and constituency, Jewargi, in Kalaburagi district. Most patients in Jewargi need a bed, oxygen and Remdesivir, and Singh has ordered jumbo oxygen cylinders for his constituents at his own cost, because there is an acute shortage of oxygen beds. There have also been some deaths in neighbouring taluks due to lack of oxygen.
Dr Singh himself tested Covid-positive and completed treatment earlier this week. The recent polls in Maski and Basavakalyan have taken a toll, with many who participated in rallies and the bypolls testing positive.
Doctor-MLA Anjali Nimbalkar has has set up a helpline in her constituency Khanapur, which has seen a few deaths and many critical patients. Those in need of Remdesivir, beds and oxygen can dial Dr Anjali, and her phone seldom stops buzzing -- about sick Covid patients who have to be isolated, SOS for oxygen and Remdesivir, and other distress calls.
Many Maharashtra returnees spread the virus here, with one village reporting 144 cases. Khanapur, an hour's drive from the Maharashtra border, has a large number of people working in the neighbouring state.