HYDERABAD: Politicians, members of various parties and bureaucrats have brought the VIP culture to Covid testing, putting more pressure on the common man. In some pockets of Hyderabad, several Primary Health Centre (PHC) staffers said that they are forced by VIPs to keep aside 15-10% of the allotted test kits, sparing the rest for the general public. Each PHC in the GHMC region receives close to 100-200 testing kits each every day.
“It has become a very difficult for us. People are queuing up in the centres from 6 am for a test, but several VIP’s request for these tests every other day, forcing us to keep some aside and turning away people,” said a highly placed source from a PHC located in the central zone of the GHMC.
The staffers are also forced let the VIPs jump the queue. “We have often faced the brunt from people when VIPs jump the queue to get tested. Our hands are tied as, if we deny, we get calls from the higher-ups,” said another source.
The general public, On the other hand, has reported a wait time of up to four hours. Some even receive tokens to get tested at a government facility three days after registering.Amongst the long list of “requests” from VIPs is that the government staff must come to their house to collect samples. “Often, technicians go to the home of these individuals to collect samples. These requests are usually after our work hours, and late at night. PHC staffers work from 8 am to 7 pm and then are forced into such jobs,” added the source. A PHC caters to a population of 50,000 and has just two lab technicians — one for routine lab work and another for Covid tests.
More so, to not draw attention that they are getting special treatment, the VIPs insist these staff to not come in medical wear or in PPEs. Sometimes, these high-profile individuals also order the staff to arrive in ambulances and to park their vehicles a few metres away from homes. “The staff are already paid a pittance for the mounting workload and due to this VIP testing requests they are forced to spend for commute from their own pockets,” the source said.
RESERVED KITS, TESTS AT HOME
Staffers in several PHCs claim that VIPs force them to keep aside 10%-15% of their allotted test kits. The staffers are also forced let the VIPs jump the queue. The staffers are also asked to collect samples from the homes of the VIPs. Often, these requests are made after their work