COVID-19: Health Minister assures full co-operation to West Bengal

The Union government will provide all possible cooperation and assistance to the West Bengal government to tackle the crisis arising from COVID-19, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has conveyed to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee

New Delhi: The Union government will provide all possible cooperation and assistance to the West Bengal government to tackle the crisis arising from COVID-19, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has conveyed to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

On Friday afternoon, Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi complaining about the inadequacy in oxygen supply to West Bengal. Although the Prime Minister himself did not reply, the Health Minister sent his reply by night. On Saturday afternoon, state secretariat sources revealed the contents of the reply to a section of the media.

In the letter, Banerjee alleged that while on the one hand, the Centre is not allotting adequate supply to West Bengal, on the other, it is curtailing West Bengal's quota and diverting them to other states. "The situation in West Bengal is reaching an alarming stage because of the inadequacy in the supply of oxygen. The state requires 550 MT of oxygen daily on an emergency basis," she wrote.

She feared loss of lives if the state did not receive an adequate supply of oxygen. "I am looking forward to your kind intervention and cooperation in this regard urgently," she wrote.

According to her, the current daily requirement of oxygen in West Bengal is 470 metric tonne (MT) and is expected to increase to 550 MT metric tonne per day in the next seven to eight days.

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan's tweet

In his reply, Dr Vardhan said that like other states, the Centre will provide full cooperation to the West Bengal government in tackling the crisis situation. He also stressed on an united effort by the Union and state government in fighting this pandemic.

Dr Vardhan, however, alleged that in certain districts, especially where the new infection rate is 40% or above, the number of tests is inadequate. He requested Banerjee to intervene and ensure an increase in the number of tests in these pockets. He also congratulated her for her third consecutive tenure as West Bengal’s Chief Minister.