Bengal asks officials to ensure people get proper healthcare services during Durga Puja

The West Bengal government on Monday directed all senior officials in the districts to take adequate measures to ensure that people get proper healthcare services and are not denied treatment at hospitals during Durga Puja, officials said.

The district officials were also instructed to closely monitor and ensure that people adhered to the COVID-19 protocol and wore masks during pandal-hopping, they said.

The directives were issued during a virtual meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay at state secretariat Nabanna, in which district magistrates, SPs and CMOHs also took part, a senior official said.

"The meeting focussed on the COVID-19 situation in different districts of the state. All the DMs, SPs and CMOHs were directed to ensure that everyone gets proper healthcare services, including ambulance services, and are not harassed while getting admitted to the hospitals in case of any emergency during Durga Puja," the official said.

"All the officials were asked to be on alert against a possible surge in coronavirus cases in the state during the festivities," he said.

A discussion was also held on maintaining law and order during the five days of the festivities, the official said.

"The police officers were asked to formulate a guideline for people to follow the COVID-19 protocol and assist them in adhering to it," he said.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also spoke over the phone with the officials participating in the meeting, the official said.

Asked whether there was any discussion on the Calcutta High Court's order on making Durga Puja marquees no-entry zones, he said the meeting was over by the time the order came out.

Home Secretary H K Dwivedi, state Security Advisor Surajit Kar Purkayastha, DGP Virendra and Kolkata Police Commissioner Anuj Sharma also took part in the virtual meeting.