Covid testing: Public can wait, but not the lawmakers!

Gurbaxpuri

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Tarn Taran, July 18

While the higher officials of the Health Department had issued orders not to give VIP treatment to politicians and bureaucrats, the officials have started doing the opposite, it seems.

In a surprising development, the Health Department started collecting Covid-19 samples of the MLAs from their homes, while the general masses have been left out in the lurch.

The samples have been collected from homes on the instructions of Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, who had asked the authorities to collect the samples of all MLAs. The doctor wore a PPE kit and collected the samples and adopted all precautions. — Rohit Mehta, SMO, Tarn Taran Civil Hospital

The department, so far, has collected the samples of Dharambir Agnihotri, MLA from Tarn Taran, and Harminder Singh Gill, MLA from Patti. According to the information, ENT specialist Dr Sarabjit Singh collected the samples of Dharambir Agnihotri and Harminder Singh Gill from their residences.

Rohit Mehta, Senior Medical Officer (SMO) of the local Civil Hospital, said this was done on the instructions of Chief Minster Capt Amarinder Singh, who had asked the authorities to collect the samples of all MLAs. The SMO said the doctor wore a PPE kit and collected the samples and adopted all precautions.

However, the samples of other two MLAs — Ramanjit Singh Sikki from Khadoor Sahib and Sukhpal Singh Bhullar from Khemkaran, who stay out of the area, have not been collected.

Meanwhile, the district administration is yet to start sample collection from the doorsteps of the general masses.

Daljit Singh Dialpura, a farmers’ leader, said: “MLAs does not deserve a VIP treatment when lakhs of other people are deprived of medical facilities. Not only this, it is not safe for medicos even. The MLAs should themselves visit the Civil Hospitals to understand the pain and difficulties of the general patients.”

Mahaveer Singh Gill of Patti also condemned the move of sending doctors to the residences of MLAs to collect Covid-19 samples, when the department had failed to implement the policy to send teams on the doorsteps of the general masses.

Agnihotri tests +ve

The Covid report of Tarn Taran MLA Dharambir Agnihotri came out positive on Saturday. Deputy Commissioner Kulwant Singh said of the 347 reports received on Saturday, six came out positive. The number of active cases is 21.