Gujarat HC Raises Questions On State Government Claims Of Adequate Covid Beds

On Tuesday, the Gujarat High Court picked the state government on the difficulty of admission of Covid patients in hospitals even though there were enough beds available. The High Court had taken a suo moto case on the same issue. The hearing was presided over by Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Bhargav Karia, with Manisha Shah representing the Gujarat government. The Court noted, "The figures shared by you suggest that even designated hospitals have vacant beds, (if that is true) then why are people running around, finding sources and recommendations for getting hospitals beds and treatment?".

In defence of the government, Manisha Shah said that while beds were available at other facilities, some of which were far away from patients' homes, people wanted to be admitted to particular hospitals, resulting in their complete occupancy.

The Bench also discussed other concerns raised by residents of the state, such as the delay in crucial patient pick-up time while calling 108. It also inquired as to why seriously ill patients who arrived in personal vehicles rather than the 108 ambulances were not admitted to government hospitals.

The government's lawyer informed the bench that only 55,783 of 79,944 beds were occupied at hospitals and other medical facilities. The oxygen supply was said to be adequate, and a special control room was set up at the office of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani to track it.

According to The Times of India, senior advocate Percy Kavina expressed disappointment with the Centre's decision to discontinue insurance coverage under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojna 9 (PMGKY). for medical professionals who succumbed to Covid-19 whilile on duty. The court ordered the government to file an affidavit after hearing all of the arguments and set the next hearing for April 27.

Also Read: High Court Asks Gujarat Government To Produce Real Data of Covid-19 Positive Cases And Deaths