Amidst the shortage of beds being faced in various states of the country, Union Minister General VK Singh's tweet seeking 'help' for a Covid-19-infected person in his constituency, Ghaziabad, in the same regard has fuelled controvery as it indicates the poor condition of the country's health infrastructure. However, his tweet was perceived as a sign of his privileged position. To avoid controversies further, the minister deleted the tweet later.
The Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways had posted on Twitter seeking help from authorities in Ghaziabad to get a hospital bed for "my brother".
He had tagged the district magistrate in his tweet, prompting Twitterati to raise questions about the state of the medical infrastructure in the country where even a minister's relative was struggling to find a bed.
Reacting to his tweet, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi realised that General Singh had only forwarded a plea, even though she, too, highlighted the "helplessness of an elected representative".
The MP tweeted, "Here, Hon. MP and Minister has forwarded a plea received by him to the DM. But this tweet in itself explains the helplessness of an elected representative & his inability to find a single bed in his constituency. I hope the patient gets the help needed and is fine soon."
Later Singh justified his tweet saying, "Clarification: I tweeted this request so that the district administration can reach the person in need and provide him with the medical care that his brother requires. He is not my brother by blood relation, but by bond of humanity. I think it's an alien concept to some."
He deleted the older tweet and said, "Am amazed at IQ level of trawls and fastest finger channels. Tweet was forward of a tweet to DM and says 'please look into this'. Forwarded tweet is in Hindi. Bed needs have been sorted out by DM & CMO, hence to DM. Suggest correct your understanding."
Currently, many states, cities, districts are facing crisis situation while dealing with the COVID-19 situation. Many hospitals, covid centers are running out of beds, oxygen and other equipments.
