An FIR was filed on Friday, 5th June 2020, against Sir Ganga Ram Hospital on charges of violating ICMR testing guidelines for coronavirus, following the State Government complaint by Deputy Secretary (Health) Amit Kumar Pamasi, hours after warning by Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal for private hospitals in Delhi.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that a few private hospitals in Delhi were misleading about not having vacant beds and giving in to ‘black marketeering.’ The FIR stated, “The CDMO-cum-mission director (central) has mentioned that Sir Ganga Ram Hospital is still not using RT-PCR app as of 3 June, which is a clear violation of directions issued under the Epidemic Diseases COVID-19 Regulations 2020”.
The mobile RT-PCR app, launched by the Ministry of Health of the Union in April 2020, is intended to fill data collection centers at the sample collection point to minimize errors in the reporting of real-time data to the authorities. A resident Dr. B B Wadhwa said in a statement, “Hospitals are the backbone of the healthcare system. They are being penalized and the government, instead of praising their efforts, is issuing new dictatorial orders daily. Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and its doctors who have saved lakhs of lives in the last decades are being penalized and threatened. The FIR against the hospital is highly condemnable and demoralizing for the entire medical fraternity.” The FIR has prompted intense reactions from the Delhi Medical Association (DMA).
There was no response from the Delhi Government. Testing for COVID-19 has been halted at the hospital since 3rd June 2020, when the Department of Health released an alert to the doctor. Previously, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal warned private hospitals about the suspected denial of admission to coronavirus patients and stated that health officials would be stationed in hospitals to ensure that every COVID-19 patient has access to beds.
D S Rana, chairman of the board, Sri Ganga Ram Hospital stated, “It is a simple communication gap which will be sorted out soon” He also demanded that the Delhi Government appoint DMA professionals with the Delhi Government to look aftercare facilities, provide an adequate number of screening facilities for early detection of COVID-19 patients, prompt and efficient transport and cremation system in accordance with the COVID- 19 guidelines, and a nodal officer for each region to facilitate the overall functioning of the COVID care system.
The total number of confirmed positive coronavirus cases in Delhi reached 27, 654. The recovered patients were 10, 664, and 761 people succumbed to the virus. Prime Minister Narendra Modi initiated ‘Unlock- 1’ pan- India in a hope to restart the normal functioning of the country slowly and at a steady pace step by step.
