Via the Tripura Times in northeast India: Health minister holds meeting with officials; Kangrai incident to rock Assembly today.
After a brief recess, Budget session of the Assembly will begin tomorrow. The remaining three days of the session will be stormy with opposition Congress planning to pile heat on Health and Family Welfare Minister Tapan Chakraborty for his alleged failure to check the deaths of tribal villagers at Kangrai in Kanchanpur subdivision.
Congress legislators have already discussed the issue threadbare and prepared their strategy. Alarmed by the epidemic like situation at Kangrai, Health Minister and Principal Secretary YP Singh had already visited the spot and instructed the authority to do all possible steps to check the outbreak of mysterious disease.
A special sub centre was set up at Kangrai to provide medical assistance to the ailing people.
While Congress MLA Subal Bhowmik visited the ill-fated village on June 23, Opposition leader Ratan Lal Nath inspected Kangrai yesterday to know the ground reality.
Mr. Nath has already demanded resignation of Health Minister for his alleged failure to check the outbreak of the mysterious disease.The outbreak of mysterious disease that has so far claimed 26 lives has pushed the government in an awaked situation keeping in view of the Assembly session. The deaths of mysterious disease have exposed the poor health service in the rural areas like Kangrai.
Sources said, the treasury bench has also envisaged strategy on how the tackle the opposition members in the Assembly tomorrow.It has been learnt that Health Minister held a meeting with senior Health department officials where he was briefed about the steps taken by the department to tackle the situation.
The steps include setting up of a special sub-centre, engagement of a paediatrician at Kanchanpur hospital and house to house surveillance in the entire subdivision.
The government today formally informed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare about the outbreak of Respiratory Tract Infection (RTI) at Kangrai in Kanchanpur subdivision.
The outbreak of RTI has claimed 14 lives, according to an official of Health department.Mike Coston at Avian Flu Diary has some useful commentary on this story.
