Government hospitals are centres of service, not centres of earning: Rakesh Jamwal
BJP chief spokesperson Rakesh Jamwal launched a scathing attack on the state government and the hospital administration over the decision to increase the price of food for patients at IGMC, saying that the Congress government is now bent on squeezing the public on every front. He said that imposing the burden of inflation on those fighting a life-and-death battle in the hospital reflects the government’s insensitivity and inhumane thinking.
Rakesh Jamwal said that first the state government messed with public welfare schemes like Himcare, then harassed beneficiaries of the Sahara scheme, then increased the rates of tests and examinations in hospitals, and now the remaining gap has been covered by increasing the cost of patient meals. He said that the Congress government has turned every sector of service into a business of extortion.
He said that government hospitals like IGMC are the last hope for patients from the poor, middle class, and remote areas. Families coming here for treatment are already burdened by the cost of medicines, tests, rent, and food. In such a situation, increasing the cost of food for patients is nothing short of a cruel joke. The government should understand that hospitals are not centers for profit, but places for human service.
BJP chief spokesperson Rakesh Jamwal said that on one hand the state government is spending crores of rupees on its ministers and political pomp, while on the other hand even two meals a day for poor patients have become more expensive. If the government had any sensitivity left, it would have cut its expenses, but unfortunately the Congress government is busy looting the public’s pockets.
Rakesh Jamwal said that attendants accompanying patients admitted to IGMC already rely on langars, dharamshalas, and loans. Many families come from villages to get treatment by selling land or taking out loans. Raising food prices at such a time exposes the government’s anti-poor mentality. He said that the government should explain where the poor should go. Are government hospitals also being pushed out of reach of the common man?
He said that the people of the state have understood the reality of the Congress government. The government, which made big promises before the elections, is now harassing every section of society. Employees, farmers, youth, women, businessmen, patients—there is no class left from which this government is not extorting money. The situation has now become such that even a person seeking treatment at a hospital cannot escape the government’s exploitation.
Rakesh Jamwal demanded that the increased food prices for patients and attendants at IGMC be immediately rolled back and that special arrangements be made to provide relief to poor patients. He said that the BJP, acting as the voice of the people, will strongly oppose this anti-people decision and will continue to expose the insensitive policies of the Congress government to the public.
