Vice-President expresses anguish over stigmatising COVID-19 patients

Expressing anguish over instances of stigmatizing COVID-19 patients who succumbed to coronavirus, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu urged the citizens to treat them with understanding and empathy in order to prevent recurrence of such happenings.

New Delhi: Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday expressed his anguish over instances of stigmatizing COVID-19 patients who succumbed to coronavirus.

The Vice-President said such incidents were totally uncalled for and urged the local communities and the society at large to prevent the recurrence of such happenings.

In a Facebook post, Naidu said, "The need of the hour is to fight prejudice and nip it in the bud. Otherwise, it can become more toxic than fake news and misinformation".

Urging everybody to treat COVID-19 patients with understanding and empathy, he said, "It should be remembered that nobody is totally safe and the invisible virus can infect anybody".

Pointing to media reports, Naidu expressed concern over people who are stigmatizing and ostracizing those infected with coronavirus, mainly due to fear of contracting the infection.

Referring to instances, where people opposed providing burial space to those who died of COVID-19, he said it was totally unacceptable and goes against the age-old Indian traditions of showing solidarity with bereaved family members.

Naidu further urged the health authorities and the media to take up special campaigns to promote awareness and educate people on all the facts relating to the coronavirus and its transmission.

Referring to the Kargil Vijay Diwas that is being celebrated on Sunday, the Vice-President said, "As we pay homage to martyred soldiers on Kargil Vijay Diwas, the nation is ever grateful to Indian Armed Forces for their valor, patriotism and sacrifices in protecting the sovereignty of the motherland."

ANI