Chennai: Condemning the state government for the neo-natal deaths at Dharmapuri GH, DMK president M. Karunanidhi on Wednesday faulted the state government with delayed intervention and wondered why the state government did not show as much interest in protecting the babies as it showed in converting the new secretariat into a hospital.
Listing out a series of neo-natal death cases reported in the media in the state recently, Karunanidhi, in a statement, said that though the hospital’s former dean claimed there was no shortage of required equipment, there seemed to be only five beds equipped with breathing accessories.
“The government has intervened in this matter after so many deaths and Chief Minister (O. Panneerselvam) is trying to shield the government by stating that there was no lapse in medical attention,” the DMK president added. Had the government acted early, many infants could have been saved, he said, adding, parents were wondering, “if there is a health minister named Vijayabaskar and what he is doing.”
Referring to the hasty conversion of new assembly-secretariat complex into a super-specialty hospital, Karunanidhi asked, “should not the same concern be shown” in this case also.
Condemning the ‘lackadaisical’ attitude of the government, Karunanidhi also demanded action against those responsible for the incident and sought preventive measures to avoid recurrence of such incidents.
