Mangaluru: Even though the Central Government had said that anyone can get treatment anywhere in the country under its health insurance policy, two labourers from West Bengal were allegedly denied treatment in the Dakshina Kannada district.
According to sources, two migrant labourers from West Bengal, Gobindo and Amith, met with a road accident in Theerthahalli on Tuesday and were immediately rushed to the KMC Hospital in Manipal by a team of social workers led by Rafeeq. The doctors at the Manipal Hospital asked Rafeeq and his team to move them to the Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru as the two are from outside the state. However, Rafeeq and his team were forced to pay Rs 60,000 for their primary treatment at the KMC Hospital.
When they arrived at the Wenlock Hospital, they were again denied treatment stating that non-COVID patients are not given treatment as it has been converted into a Covid hospital. Later, DMO of the Wenlock Hospital Dr Sadashiv referred the patients to the K S Hegde Hospital in Deralakatte and the two were moved there.
Again, the patients were denied treatment as they were from outside the state. When Rafeeq and his team questioned the hospital and informed about the Central Government’s health scheme, the K S Hegde Hospital’s management complained against him and his team at the Ullal police station.
After unsuccessful attempts to secure help from the locals, Rafeeq and his team finally approached Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) state president Muneer Katipalla and sought his help. Though Muneer Katipalla tried to contact the Deputy Commissioner of the district and District Health Officer, they allegedly did not pick his call. Finally, Muneer communicated with Dr Sadashiv of the Wenlock Hospital and succeeded in moving both the patients to the Government Medical Hospital in Hassan and later, they were shifted to the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital in Bengaluru.
Speaking to Newskarnataka.com, Muneer Katipalla said that that two migrant labourers were denied treatment at the hospitals in our city, even though they are from BPL families. “Besides that, a false complaint was also filed against the social workers even though they came forward to help two unknown persons. If any untoward incident happens to them, the district administration should be held responsible and strict action should be taken against the management of the private hospital,” he said.
Expressing his displeasure over the whole incident, Muneer Katipalla uploaded the image of the patients on social media and opined that such kind of incidents should not repeat anywhere in out district as it is a black dot for Dakshina Kannada. “Both are receiving treatment at the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital in Bengaluru. We hope they recover soon. But, we did not get proper response from the Deputy Commissioner or the District Health Officer,” he lamented.
