Tripura Minister to Keep MPs in Covid-19 Hospital to Check Deaths by Negligence amid Rising Concerns

Tripura minister Ratan Lal Nath said that cabinet ministers will be deployed at the state’s dedicated Covid-19 facility, Govind Ballabh Pant (GBP) hospital if any complaints of patient’s death due to negligence is reported.

As the state continues to record rise in Covid-19 deaths, Law minister Ratan Lal Nath said: “no one should die due to negligence.” If a case of negligence is observed, “one Cabinet minister will take turn to stay at the hospital,” he was quoted as saying.

The statement came a week after a case of death by negligence was reported after a three-year-old boy died at the GBP hospital due to injuries sustained while taking a swab for Covid-19 testing. The sample was collected as the mother of the infant tested positive.

Latest health bulletin shows Tripura registered its highest single-day spike of 691 coronavirus cases on Saturday, pushing the state tally to 14,527. The death toll rose to 136 after seven more people succumbed to the virus.

Nath’s statement also came after BJP MLA and former health minister, Sudip Roy Barman, on Friday said the state government has failed to control the Covid-19 situation in the state. He alleged that senior doctors of GBP Hospital are unwilling to treat coronavirus patients adding that only the junior doctors and the medical students are attending to the patients.

Roy Barman who was removed from the ministerial position in June, said he had tried to get in touch with the Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb with suggestions on the Covid-19 situation, but no response was given.

Citing records of severe negligence by hospital officials, he claimed he has photographs to prove that the body of a deceased patient remained in the hospital for 72 hours before anyone attended to it. The body was eventually taken to cremation with help from a sweeper.

He demanded the state to appoint a full-time health minister to ensure that health services are adequately adhered to. The Chief Minister currently holds the health portfolio along with 28 departments. “How will the chief minister manage the health department when he is holding charge of 28 departments alone?” he was quoted as asking.

The state currently has 5,887 active cases, while 8,483 people have recovered from the disease. Twenty-one patients have migrated to other states. A total of 2,92,272 samples have been tested for Covid-19 so far.

(With inputs from PTI)