The party alleged that the "negligence" of the CM was nothing short of cruelty against humanity as it had killed hundreds and infected tens of thousands.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President & Nalgonda MP N Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the "negligence" displayed by Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao in handling the coronavirus in the state was nothing short of cruelty against humanity as the negligence had killed hundreds and infected tens of thousands of people.
Addressing the party cadre on Facebook as part of the #SpeakUpTelangana campaign organised by the TPCC Covid-19 Task Force Committee on Saturday, Reddy said that KCR had adopted a casual approach in handling the Covid situation right from the beginning.
He reminded the cadre that the CM had described Covid as a normal flu which could be treated with a paracetamol, and that the virus would die in a 22 degrees Celsius environment.
"It seems that KCR still believes that Covid-19 can be treated with a paracetamol, and that that is the reason that he makes no serious efforts to follow the World Health Organisation's norm of 'Trace, Test and Treat'," he said.
Reddy also demanded that Rs 10 lakh be paid as ex-gratia to the families of poor people who died due to the coronavirus, and Rs 50 lakh each to the families of medical, health and sanitation staff, municipal and gram panchayat employees, police personnel and journalists who succumb.
The TPCC chief also stressed on increasing the number of Covid-19 tests. He said that the treatment being offered to Covid-19 patients was inadequate, too. The entire load of Covid-19 patients had been put on one hospital (Gandhi Hospital) which was overburdening the doctors and para-medical staff there. Consequently, innumerable complaints of negligence had cropped up in the last few months. No arrangements had been made at other government hospitals to treat Covid-19.
"The KCR government failed even to upgrade all the government hospitals with basic oxygen supply in the last 5-6 months to deal with the situation. There is a huge shortage of ventilators, oxygen-equipped beds, doctors, para-medics and other infrastructure," he said.
Reddy pointed out that said that many patients had sent messages a few hours before their deaths that they were not being provided oxygen and other medical care in government hospitals. However, instead of taking action and corrective measures, the TRS government found fault with the patients and condemned them for using mobile phones. And not a single incompetent and guilty official faced any action despite dozens of people dying due to negligence. He said that there was no sense of accountability either in KCR, his Health Minister Etala Rajender or any senior official. Instead, minister K T Rama Rao remarked that "only 2% of patients" were dying due to the disease. Reddy said that "2%" was not just a number, it represented hundreds of human lives. He said that this negligent attitude was nothing but brutality against humanity, and KCR would never be forgiven for showing such cruelty to Covid-19 patients and their relatives.
He also alleged that the health equipment procured during the Covid-19 crisis was of poor quality although it had been purchased at very high prices. He pointed out that nearly 150 doctors and other staff, including the Superintendant of Osmania General Hospital, were infected with Covid-19. This would not have happened if they had been provided with high quality PPE kits. Hundreds of frontline warriors against Covid-19 including doctors, para-medical staff, sanitation workers, police personnel and journalists had been infected by the virus and a few of them had also succumbed to the disease, and KCR and his team of inefficient ministers and incompetent officers were solely responsible for those deaths, Reddy claimed.
Reddy reiterated the demand that Covid-19 treatment be brought under the Aarogyasri scheme. He said that Covid-19 treatment should be totally free for all BPL families in Telangana. Further, he asked the state government to regulate the charges for Covid-19 treatment in private hospitals.
Reddy said that as part of the #SpeakUpTelangana campaign, thousands of Congress leaders and workers had uploaded videos, images and information exposing the negligence of the TRS government in handling the Covid-19 situation. He demanded that the state government act upon the issues highlighted by the Congress leaders if it was really serious about defeating Covid-19.
"The Congress is concerned about the lives of common people, and will do everything it can to save each and every citizen of Telangana," he said.