THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Attacking the government for serious flaws in dealing with the unabated bout of fever and increasing deaths in the state, former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has asked to bring out a ‘white paper’ on the scenario immediately.
Chandy was speaking at a meet marking the conclusion of the 24-hour fast undertaken by CMP leader C P John in front of the Martyrs’ Square at Palayam. Chandy said the government should disclose the specific measures undertaken for the pre-monsoon cleanliness programmes, its shortcomings and who all are responsible for it, the high incidence of fever and the reasons for not being able to contain it, and finally the actual death toll so far.
He said a white paper carrying such things would be of great help for at least next year in the event of another fever bout.
The state is painfully coping with the reality the benchmarks on health achieved by the state is falling and different types of fever have become deadly along with an infestation of many other diseases.
“In a concerted manner, we were trying to defeat the spread of diseases. But this year, as per the government statistics alone, over 200 people have died of fever.
The actual figures will be much higher though. The Health Minister is desperately trying to put the number of deaths at a low. The Health Department seems to have been afflicted with fever,” he said.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan himself has expressed displeasure over handling the self-financing medical fee fixation issue by the Health Department as well. “Now the government is contemplating to issue a new ordinance to tide over the messy situation,” he said.
“The pre-monsoon cleanliness drive was not taken up, nor local bodies were sanctioned Rs 25,000 for each ward, as was the practice during the UDF Government’s tenure. Permissive sanction for local bodies to use even Plan funds came only too late,” he said.“The Opposition still does not want to mix politics in the issue. But the government, at any cost, should give adequate compensation to support the families of those who died owing to fever, with reference especially when a vast majority of victims are from the lower strata of society,” he said referring to his visit to two such households in Alappuzha district the other day.
Vattiyoorkavu MLA K Muraleedharan said just like clamping a ban for a few months for inflow and outflow of Indian nationals by Gulf countries during the days of plague in Surat, the same cowith reference to Keralites if the news on the epidemic fever bout and deaths in the state reached foreign shores. “The government remains unmoved even after all-party meetings and hospital development committee meet. There is a huge shortage of medicines, doctors, nurses and other staff in hospitals,” he said. Anoop Jacob MLA said it is shame for a government which cannot do anything to checkmate the fever bout and push scores of affected to death.
C P John undertook the fast from Wednesday morning demanding Rs 10 lakh compensation for the families of those who have succumbed to fever and supply of free medicines and food for the affected lot. The CMP had submitted the demand to the Chief Minister in writing, but it didn’t yield results, thereby leading to the open protest. Chandy offered lime juice to C P John, bringing the fast to an end,in the presence of party activists and UDF leaders.