VIJAYAWADA: Alleging that private hospitals were flouting norms day in and day out, Government Chief Whip Gadikota Srikanth Reddy on Monday said Ramesh Hospitals should be held responsible for the fire mishap at COVID-19 facility.
He criticised TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu for drawing up controversy over the fire accident in a bid to blame the State government.
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has included COVID-19 under Aarogyasri for patients to get treated in private hospitals.
However, some private hospitals such as Ramesh Hospitals have been violating the rules and charging exorbitant fees for treatment, the Chief Whip alleged.
Without taking any safety precautions, they have been hiring private hotels and operating quarantine centres, he said. The government has constituted a committee to investigate the incident and strict action will be taken against the guilty, Gadikota added.
Srikanth Reddy said that the TDP leaders have remained silent on the tragedy only because Ramesh Hospitals belong to their party supporter and the mistake lies on their end. He said that Dr Ramesh, a staunch supporter of the TDP, took part in Naidu’s Zoom conferences and found fault with government’s measures to control COVID-19.
He asserted that the government, under the leadership of Jagan, is making strenuous efforts to contain COVID-19 and has conducted more than 20 lakh tests so far.He said that Andhra Pradesh stands as a role model for many States in taking steps in containing the killer virus and conducting COVID-19 tests.
Srikanth Reddy slammed the TDP chief for politicising every issue.
People have been watching Naidu’s double standards and the cheap politics he is indulging in over decentralisation and three capitals issue, and are waiting to reject him forever, Gadikota said and dared Naidu to give an open letter opposing Kurnool as judicial capital.