[Marxistindia] Andaman: Grave Health Emergency

[news from the cpi(m)]

August 13, 2020


Press Release

We are herewith releasing the text of the letter addressed to the  
Prime Minister Narendra Modi by CPI(M) General Secretary, Sitaram  
Yechury, on the grave health emergency with the surging Covid-19  
pandemic, in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands and the necessity to take  
urgent measures to protect lives and provide relief to people.  The  
letter was delivered today.


For CPI(M) Central Committee Office

********


Shri Narendra Modi
Hon’ble Prime Minister
Government of India
New Delhi


Dear Pradhan Mantri ji,

I have seen the media reports regarding your address to your party  
workers in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.  You have, re-announced a  
high-speed broadband connectivity to the islands.  This was decided by  
the Government of India many years ago and, according to reports, the  
work on laying the underwater cables from Chennai had already begun.  
However, any measure to improve the living conditions in the islands  
is most welcome.

In this time of a grave health emergency with the surging Covid-19  
pandemic, it is necessary that the Central Government  take urgent  
measures to protect lives and provide relief to people.  All of us are  
aware of the large distances between the islands of Andaman & Nicobar.  
  As the Covid cases are growing and the deaths are mounting, it is  
appalling to note that there is only one centre for testing and only  
one Covid hospital for all the islands, which is in Port Blair.  The  
testing conducted here takes eight days for the results be known, by  
which time the patient would have moved into a very critical and  
irretrievable respiratory condition.  18 doctors in this Covid  
hospital have contracted the virus.

Northern Andamans, which is home to half the population of the  
islands, is far away from Port Blair and takes many days for a patient  
to reach this Covid  hospital.

Under these conditions, it is absolutely imperative that more Covid  
testing centres are opened; the time for the results must be reduced  
by providing facilities on the islands; more health centres capable of  
treating Covid patients must be established in as many places in the  
islands as possible and adequate relief to the people, on a war-footing.


The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are a Union Territory coming directly  
under the administrative control of the Union Home Ministry.  There  
are no elected bodies on the islands.  Hence, people have no recourse  
to appeal for help except to the administration.

Since the administration on the islands comes under the direct control  
of your government, I am appealing to you to urgently intervene and  
take, at least, the above mentioned necessary measures on a war-footing.

	With regards,

Yours sincerely





(Sitaram Yechury)