Coming down heavily on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government for the management of COVID-19 situation in the state, Allahabad High Court on Tuesday said the entire medical system in villages and small towns in Uttar Pradesh is "Ram bharose" (at God's mercy).
A High Court Bench comprising Justice Siddharth Verma and Justice Ajit Kumar made the observation while taking into account the death of Santosh Kumar (64), who died while admitted to an isolation ward at a Meerut hospital.
The court said there is negligence in the treatment of COVID patients amid the rapid increase in infection in small towns and rural areas and added that there is a need for immediate improvement.
The Court directed the Additional Chief Secretary, Medical and Health, to take 'stern action' against those responsible for Santosh Kumar's death.
The court has directed the state government to take steps to improve the medical infrastructure in hospitals in the state within four months and to develop five medical colleges (Prayagraj, Agra, Kanpur, Gorakhpur, and Meerut) as Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) level institutions.
The Court said the state government should take recourse to the emergency law of land acquisition and provide funds for this and added that these institutions should also be given some degree of autonomy.
The state government was also directed that every nursing home/ hospital, which has more than 20 beds, should have at least 40 per cent of their beds as intensive care units.
The High Court said every nursing home and hospital, which has more than 30 beds, should compulsorily have an oxygen production plant.
"All the 20-bed nursing homes in the state should have at least 40 per cent beds in ICUs and 25 per cent have ventilators. The remaining 25 per cent of the high-flow nasal BIPAP should be provided. A 30-bed nursing home must have an oxygen plant," it said.
The court added every second and third-tier town of Uttar Pradesh should be provided with at least 20 ambulances and every village should be provided with at least two ambulances having intensive care unit facilities.
( With inputs from ANI )
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