Health state subject, but working with Centre as Covid-19 is pandemic: Bengal CS

Kolkata, April 16 (IANS) Denying discrepancy between the Covid-19 figures given by the Central and state government, the West Bengal administration on Thursday emphasised that though health is a state subject, it is working shoulder to shoulder with the Centre to contain the pandemic.

Asked about the state government’s stand on the Centre declaring four districts in West Bengal as hotspots of the viral infection, Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha said the administration had taken containment measures in more areas.

“There is no discrepancy between the figures given by the Centre and the state. They have spoken about containment zones, areas where repeated cases have been detected. They have identified four districts in our state and asked us to take measures for containment which we are doing.

“They have spoken of four districts. We are taking all containment measures in additional areas as well. We have done microplanning so that the disease does not spread,” he said.

To a query about the centre instructing states to go house to house to in the hotspots, Sinha said: “All your questions start with what the Central government has said, and what the state government has been doing.

“I don’t understand this bias with Central government instructions. Let me make it clear, health is a state subject. Covid-19 is a national pandemic. So, the Centre and the state governments are working together.”

“Whether it is lockdown, restriction, the home ministry, cabinet secretary, health department, health ministry — all are working together. We are exchanging information,” he added.

Sinha said the state has an expert group comprising eminent doctors, and a global advisory group that includes Nobel laureates Abhijit Vinayak Baneree and Estheer Duflo.

“We are taking all shades of opinion. There is no shortcoming from our side in planning and tackling the disease,” he said.

He, however, denied any knowledge about the number of cases determined by the death audit committee formed by the state to ascertain whether a coronavirus positive person died of the disease.

“Whenever we confirm the death of a corona positive person on the dashboard, it automatically gets referred to the audit committee. We don’t have information on the number of cases they have examined, or are pending with them, or the cases they have classified as due to comorbidity,” he said.

–IANS

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