He said the Congress remained in power for about 50 years in Himachal as well as at the Centre, but there were only about 50 ventilators in the state when the pandemic started.
Tag: Covid management
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Can courts venture into executive domain on COVID-19 management and how far, SC to examine
By PTI
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that it would examine how far can constitutional courts venture into issues which are exclusively in the domain of executive related to COVID-19 management.The top court said that the courts need to respect the demarcation of power given under the constitution even though the objective was in fairness to everybody.
It said that the court will examine whether at all the Allahabad High Court needed to tread in this arena and whether it’s ‘Ram Bharose’ comment was justified.
The remarks of a bench of Justices Vineet Saran and Dinesh Maheshwari came while hearing an appeal against the Allahabad High Court order relating to management of the COVID-19 situation in Uttar Pradesh in which it had said that the entire healthcare system in villages and small cities of the state was “Ram bharose” (at God’s mercy).
The bench said, “What we want to lay down is how far a constitutional court can venture into an issue like this. Whether at all the High Court needed to tread on this arena? Despite the objective being in fairness to everybody we have to respect the demarcation. How far Ram Bharose’ comments justified”.
Justice Saran said “There were questions like how many ambulances are there, how many oxygen beds are there. We don’t want to comment on these questions. It’s not that you cannot give suggestions but how can you ask local companies to take vaccine formula and manufacture it? How can such direction be given?”
Justice Maheshwari also said that there are certain issues which are the domain of the executive and moreover at the time of crisis everybody has to proceed cautiously and have to take note of what is to be done by whom.
“We may have 110 suggestions but can we make it part of an order? We have to remember that we are a constitutional court”, Justice Maheshwari said, adding that collective efforts are needed at the time of crisis, but good intent in itself does not give everybody a right to enter into other’s arena.
The bench said that although there cannot be a straightjacket formula for every problem but there are certain norms within which every institution works.
The top court at the outset, asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta about the status of the case to which he replied that a bench of acting chief justice in the high court is hearing the case now.
Mehta said that the court may set aside the order of the High Court.
The bench said that in its earlier order it had already stated that directions of the High Court should be treated as suggestions and therefore no formal set aside is required.
It told Mehta that his assistance is required in collating all the orders passed by the court in the case and at present since High Court is dealing with the matter, this court does not intend to take it up.
Senior advocate Nidesh Gupta, who has been appointed as amicus curiae in the matter, stated that the High Court has said that viability of its directions has to be seen by the State.
He said that the court may ask the Uttar Pradesh government to do what it is proposing to do before the third wave as it is a lull before the storm.
The bench said that it will take up the matter on August 12 and the High Court can continue hearing the case.
The state government in its affidavit has said that it has a total of 2200 basic life support ambulances in addition to 250 advanced life support ambulances.
It has said that there are 298 community health centres in the state and 177 oxygen concentrators have been provided to 273 such centres and it is purchasing over 20,000 oxygen concentrators.
On May 21, Observing that high courts should refrain from passing directions which are not implementable, the top court had stayed the High Court order passed on May 17.
It had said that the directions of the High Court shall not be treated as directives but an advice to the UP government.
It had stayed the High Court order but had not stayed the proceedings before the High Court in the matter as it appointed amicus curiae to assist the court on the issue.
It had said the High Court while considering a matter on management of COVID-19 situation which has a national or trans-national ramification should refrain from dealing with it as the top court is seized of the issue.
On May 17, the High Court while hearing a PIL over the spread of coronavirus and the condition of quarantine centres in UP passed a slew of directions while taking into account the death of one Santosh Kumar (64), who was admitted to an isolation ward at a Meerut hospital.
The doctors there had failed to identify him and disposed off the body as unidentified, according to a probe report.
Santosh had fainted at a hospital bathroom on April 22 and efforts were made to revive him but he died.
The hospital staff could not identify the dead and failed to locate his file.
Thus, it was taken as a case of an unidentified body.
The High Court while commenting on the issue had said that if this is the state of affairs at a medical college in a city like Meerut, then the entire medical system of the state pertaining to smaller cities and villages can only be taken to be like a famous Hindi saying, ”Ram bharose”.
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Rahul Gandhi releases white paper on Covid management, says it was ‘disastrous’
By PTI
NEW DELHI: Alleging that the management of the first and second wave of COVID by the Centre was “disastrous”, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday released a ‘white paper’ by the party on the handling of COVID-19 and urged the Union government to prepare for the third wave by improving medical infrastructure and carrying out vaccination on a war footing to protect all Indians.Claiming that 90 percent of the COVID-19 deaths in the second wave were “needless” as they were due to oxygen shortage, Gandhi, who held a virtual press conference on the pandemic situation, also took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying his “tears did not save the lives, but oxygen could have saved them”.
The Congress leader, however, said the aim of the ‘white paper’ was not to point fingers at the government but to help the nation prepare for the third wave of infection as the whole country knows that a third wave will strike.
Asserting that the 150-page-long document was a result of discussions within the Congress and with experts, Gandhi said it has ‘four-pillar’ strategy–information and insights into what went wrong and how to correct them, preparation for the third wave, which includes developing critical infrastructure like oxygen and other medical supply and the idea of an economic assistance package to assist the poorest and the weakest.
The fourth element of the paper is to have a COVID compensation fund.
Attacking Gandhi over the ‘white paper’, BJP leader Sambit Patra accused him of playing politics over COVID crisis, and said when something good happens in the fight against coronavirus, the Congress and Rahul Gandhi “specially do something to derail it”.
“Yesterday was a significant day when India became the first country in the world to administer 87 lakh vaccine doses in one day. People seemed excited and jubilant. There is a feeling that India is winning in its fight against coronavirus, just then Rahul Gandhi spoke of white paper and tried to derail it,” BJP national spokesperson said.
Gandhi said,”Yes, good work has happened yesterday (highest number of vaccines administered) but this is not a series of events. The government has to make this process work not just for one day but every day until we have vaccinated our whole population.”
The Congress leader also urged the Central government not to have bias against non-BJP-ruled states and treat all states equally for COVID-19 vaccinations.
Hitting out at the Prime Minister, Gandhi alleged that he did not take the second wave seriously as he was busy fighting elections in West Bengal and his focus was elsewhere.
“The Prime Minister’s tears cannot wipe the tears of those who lost the lives of their dear ones.
The families know that when their father, mother, brother, sister died, the Prime Minister was not there.
The PM’s tears did not save the lives of those who died, but oxygen could have saved them,” he said, while taking a swipe at the PM for turning emotional during his address to the nation earlier this month.
The former Congress chief said doctors have told him that “90 percent of the deaths during the second wave were needless.
They could have been saved had timely oxygen and medicines been provided to them”.
Around 3.89 lakh COVID deaths have been reported in India so far with a majority of them during the second wave.
The country’s daily infections have on Tuesday come down to 42,640 new cases, the lowest in 91 days, after reporting over 4.5 lakh cases during the peak.
The former Congress chief said it is pretty clear that the management of the first and second wave was “disastrous” and the party has tried to point out reasons in its white paper.
“This is a blueprint on how to react to the third wave, which is going to come. The idea behind our white paper report on COVID-19 is to provide insights and information so that avoidable deaths can be prevented in the coming waves. GOI must work on our constructive inputs in the interest of the country,” he later tweeted.
Asserting that the central pillar to fight COVID was vaccination, Gandhi said it was important that “we aggressively do vaccinations and cross this bridge over 100 percent vaccination as soon as possible, because that is the only protection.”
“It is important that the government prepares itself for what is going to come,” he said, adding that it needs to have the infrastructure ready, which was not there during the first and second wave, and have oxygen supply and medicines required ready.
Noting that vaccinating 50 percent of the population would not help, he said everyone should be vaccinated as fast as possible.
“Vaccinations should be done fast on a war footing, as a mission”.
“If the second wave was bad, the third wave would be worse,” Gandhi said, and added that the virus is smart and is mutating fast and the government has to evolve a dynamic and responsive vaccine policy by selecting vaccines that are effective.
He also attacked the Centre for not giving compensation to families of COVID victims, and said if the government can take money out of their pockets as tax on fuel, why can’t it pay adequate compensation to those who lost earning members.
Gandhi also said that this is not the time for claiming victory over COVID as the virus has hurt the country and will continue to hurt in the third wave and the consequent ones.
Urging the Prime Minister to step up vaccine production for the benefit of all, he said he should “not get into marketing gimmicks, as done in the past”.
He also alleged that the government was hiding the truth about the number of COVID deaths.
“In my view, the number of death is at least 5-6 times (more),” he alleged.
But, it is not productive for us to now get into the discussion of how many people have died, he added.
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Bringing treatment to doorsteps of patients will reduce burden on health system: PM Modi
By ANI
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that bringing treatment to the doorsteps of patients will reduce the burden on the health system and he also provided a new mantra in COVID management – ‘Jaha bimar, wahi upchaar’.The Prime Minister, while interacting with doctors and officials of Varanasi today through video conference, hailed the initiatives taken.
“Creating micro containment zones and distributing medicines at the doorstep of the people is a good initiative. We have to follow the initiative comprehensively in villages,” the PM said.
“Bringing doctors, labs and e-marketing companies together to provide a telemedicine facility named ‘Kashi Kavach’ is also a very innovative initiative,” he said.
The Prime Minister emphasized the important role played by ASHA and ANM workers in the war against COVID-19 in the villages and urged the health officials to take maximum advantage of their potential and experience.
The Prime Minister, during the video conference, lauded Varanasi for fighting efficiently against the second wave of the COVID-19 crisis.
PM Modi also reviewed the working of various COVID hospitals in Varanasi including Pandit Rajan Mishra COVID Hospital, which was recently started through the joint efforts of DRDO and the Indian Army.