COVID-19- "This Is A War Like Situation, Additional Stretchers Should Be Procured For All Those Who Need Treatment": Madras High Court

The Bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy today again took up its own-motion petition relating to monitoring the COVID-19 response in the state of Tamil Nadu & Puducherry.

Vaccines

The Court noted that there is a shortage of vaccination in the State and that, though a decision had been taken to call for a global tender, the allocation otherwise to be made by the Centre to this State should not be diverted in the wake of the State's decision to call for a global etc. tender, particularly as it may be a long-drawn process.

Drugs' supply

The Court note that at the moment, there does not appear to be much hue and cry over the non-availability of drugs, especially since the craze for Remdesivir has gone down with the public at large being aware that it may not be a life-saving drug but of limited efficacy.

Oxygen supply

The Court observed that the Oxygen supply to the State has been augmented to 519 MT per day, but the supply of 40 MT from Palakkad to the southern and western districts may have been stopped from today and that may be an area of concern since it may be logistically difficult to affect supply to the southern districts from the units near Chennai.

Condition in Puducherry

The Court noted that Puducherry reported that there was sufficient supply of oxygen, though the number of beds in Puducherry needs to be augmented.

Perusing the detailed report pertaining to Puducherry, the Court said,

"It speaks of teams of doctors having been set up who visit patients for advising them whether they need hospitalisation or further assistance or be allowed to recover in home conditions. Puducherry has also reported camps, including mobile camps, conducting tests away from government hospitals and at various centres. There appears to be sufficient supply of vaccines left, even after the second dose is to be administered to those who have got the first."

Importantly, the Court noted that by and large, things appeared to be under control, however, to ensure that there is the prevention of a large number of cases in future, the Court directed,

"Immediate steps need to be taken to accelerate the rate of vaccination, including creating awareness among sections of people, particularly in the non-urban areas, of the need to take the vaccine to protect themselves."

The Court also directed that every endeavour must be made by the State and even in the Union Territory to ensure that abandoned or disused places be converted into make-shift hospitals to augment the number of beds available for Covid patients.

The State Legal Services Authority and the Puducherry Legal Services Authority were directed to monitor the hygiene and Covid protocol and measures to treat patients at all the correctional homes.

Lastly, noting that there are some murmurs regarding hefty amounts being demanded at some places for release of dead bodies and that elsewhere in the country, there are reports of persons at the crematoria demanding more money to cremate the Covid dead, the Court said,

"The common person also feels the burden of additional cost at private hospitals when no place is available at government hospitals. In addition to the rather satisfactory work taken up by the State Government, these areas should be monitored so that the common man is not burdened any further."

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