Amidst the rise in COVID-19 cases in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, in his maiden visit on Thursday, asked the administration to focus on the institutional quarantine of patients, decentralisation of the decision-making process and provision of beds on a priority basis. Thackeray, who drove to Pune, held a marathon meeting with the district administration and directed it to step up its efforts to break the chain of the virus by reducing the growth and mortality rate.
Thackeray asked the administration to improve coordination with elected representatives, citizens and among various agencies in order to increase the availability of medicines and beds for the patients. He also pointed out that deaths occur as deserving patients are unable to get beds and timely treatment in the hospitals. Therefore, he directed private laboratories to not directly give COVID-19 test reports to the patients, but to the municipal corporations, as it will help improve bed management in various hospitals.
Thackeray asked the administration to set up jumbo COVID-19 facilities on the lines of Mumbai, considering the rise in cases. He reiterated that instead of home quarantine, the administration should put in place institutional quarantine and make available ambulances with oxygen facilities.
It was Thackeray’s first visit to Pune since the outbreak of the virus. It was also important as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been targeting him for operating from home instead of going on the field. Thackeray’s visit comes on a day when the progressive cases in the Pune Municipal Corporation rose to 56,934 with 1,410 deaths. Meanwhile, Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation reported 20,177 cases with 348 deaths.
MVA meets to discuss distribution of government undertakings
On a day when CM Thackeray went to Pune to review COVID-19 crisis, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coordination committee, comprising senior ministers of ruling Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress met to discuss the distribution of various government undertakings among themselves and give more powers to the ministers of state. The meeting took place when NCP and Congress have recently complained about the lack of due share in decision-making.
Of the 79 state undertakings, the Shiv Sena and NCP may have 27 each, while Congress will have 25 based on their strength in the state assembly.
NCP was represented by Water Resources Minister Jayant Patil. Shiv Sena ministers Eknath Shinde and Subhash Shinde and Congress Ministers Balasaheb Thorat and Ashok Chavan were present at the meeting.
It was decided that the ministers of state should be called to attend the cabinet meeting if the subject is related to their respective departments.
The ruling partners decided to soon meet the CM to decide the allocation of these undertakings in the next 10 days.
Meanwhile, the ruling partners did not discuss the nomination of 12 members in the state council by the governor under his quota.
