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Deeptiman Tiwary
The | Kolkata, New Delhi |
Updated: May 5, 2020 7:38:04 am
The freight train with rice and food grains arrives at the Barasat train station, North Pargana, West Bengal.
The Interministerial Core Team that visited Kolkata, Howrah and certain other districts in West Bengal, to verify their readiness for the coronavirus, said that at 12.8 percent, the state has the highest death rate among Covid-19 patients in the country, and accused him of low evidence, weak surveillance and discrepancies in the reporting of cases
Led by Defense Ministry additional secretary Apurva Chandra, the team completed their two-week tour of West Bengal on Monday, sending the above as “Concluding Observations of the IMCT” in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Rajiva Sinha.
With West Bengal’s protocol change from April 30 to reflect all Covid-19 patients in daily statistics and death certificates, the IMCT praised this, as well as the increase in daily testing in the state from 400 to 2,410, but noted the lack of cooperation from the state bureaucracy. However, to present his final report to the Center, he urged the state to take his suggestions “in the right spirit.”
In response to the letter, Chief Secretary Sinha said: “Unfortunately, each time, two hours before receiving the letter, it is distributed to the media. We are working on it and will respond appropriately. ”
In a Kolkata hospital. Be transparent, don’t minimize the virus, says the IMCT letter. (Express photo)
In her letter, Chandra said: “The IMCT indicates that the state government made on 04/30/2020 a statement that from now on all deaths of patients with COVID would be indicated in daily statistics and that hospitals would issue the death certificate with the Committee of Physicians examining random samples. This is a big step towards transparency. At the same time, it increases the total count of deaths of COVID patients in the state to 105 on 04/30/2020. For a reported total number of 816 Covid patients The 12.8% death rate is by far the highest in the country.
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This extremely high death rate is a clear indication of low evidence and weak surveillance and monitoring. “
The letter also alleged discrepancy in various Covid-related data released by the state government. He said that in one case the state medical bulletin put the total number of patients at 744, but the same day he gave the figure of 931 in a communication to the Union Ministry of Health.
“The state must be transparent and consistent in reporting the Covid numbers and not minimize the spread of the virus. The May 1 and 2 bulletins do not even mention the total number of cases and deaths in the state, ”the letter said.
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He added that while the state has claimed a very high level of daily surveillance, no databases were shared with the IMCT. During the team’s stay, for example, 50 lakh people were reportedly surveyed in the four districts it visited. While collecting such data would require a robust system, the letter said: “There was no evidence available during our stay or field visits.”
He also accused the state of non-cooperation, saying that officials were not given access, except for the Chief Secretary for Health. In summary, the state has adopted an antagonistic vision and has not supported the IMCT in carrying out its functions.
This contradicts the experience of IMCT in other states. “
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The Center had established 10 IMCTs to tour certain districts in states such as West Bengal, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. Teams, which the Center said had to be formed because there was “routine violation of closure guidelines” in these states, were supposed to make an immediate assessment of the situation, suggest a repair, and send a report to the Center.
West Bengal had called the measure “against the spirit of federalism”, with multiple instances of exchange of words between the Center and the state about it. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the IMCT of calling state officials “indiscriminately”, hindering efforts against Covid-19.
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