Central team indicts Bengal govt over COVID-19, says 12.8 pc mortality highest in country

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Kolkata, May 4 () The COVID-19 mortality rate inWest Bengal is the highest in the country at 12.8 per cent andreflects "low testing and weak surveillance" while tacklingthe pandemic, the Centre's inter-ministerial team that visitedthe state to assess the situation said on Monday.

Before wrapping up its two-week trip, the IMCT alsoaccused the state's TMC government of being "antagonistic" tothe panel.

Extremely high mortality rate of 12.8 per cent is aclear indication of low testing and weak surveillance andtracking. This is the highest in the country," the team led byApurva Chandra, an additional secretary rank officer in theDefence Ministry, said in a stinging indictment of the stategovernment.

In his parting shot, the IAS officer said though thestate government claimed "very high level" of dailysurveillance of individuals in containment zones, nodatabase was shown or results were made available to the team.

"Collating and evaluating a database of this magnituderequires a very robust system to be in place. However, no suchevidence was available," he wrote in a letter to the state'schief secretary Rajiva Sinha.

The state, he said, needs to be transparent andconsistent in reporting figures and not downplay the spread ofthe virus.

The ruling TMC reacted angrily, alleging that the twocentral teams dispatched to take stock of the situation hadworked with a malafide intention of maligning Bengal in orderto please their BJP bosses.

Since the day the teams arrived, they have beenworking with a malafide intention to malign the state and itsefforts to tackle the pandemic. The BJP has sent these teamswith a motive to malign the people of the state, TMC RajyaSabha MP and senior leader Santanu Sen said.

The two teams which arrived in Bengal on April 20,allegedly without prior intimation to the state government,were stationed in Kolkata and in Siliguri in North Bengal.

They had flagged alleged instances of non-cooperationby the state government in providing logistical support andrelevant information during field visits.

A discrepancy has been brought out in the number ofCOVID cases reported by the state in its medical bulletins andits communications with the Government of India, Chandra wrotein the letter.

The bulletin of April 30 showed active COVID cases as572, discharged after treatment - 139 and expired due toCovid-19 - 33, making a total of 744. In a communication tounion health secretary on the same day, total number of caseswas indicated to be 931 leading to a discrepancy of 187cases, the letter said.

Chandra said despite his insistence on meetingofficials of the Home, Urban Development and MunicipalAffairs, and Food and Civil Supplies that did not materialise.

....the IMCT could interact only with the principalsecretary health through a video conference... There has beenno response or interaction with any other department of thestate government. In short, the state government has taken anantagonistic view to the IMCT and has not supported the IMCTin the performance of its duties," he wrote.

He said it was in "absolute contrast" to theexperience of central teams on similar assignment to otherstates.

The team, however, appreciated the state governmentfor raising the number of tests from 400 a day till April 20to 2,410 on May 2.

Chandra said he will submit his report to the Ministryof Home Affairs and hoped the state government will take thesuggestions in the right spirit. SCH PNT RMS SKSK SK