lives of hundreds of pilgrims, who undertook pilgrimage in the last month, could have been saved if the State Government did not face the acute shortage of medical officers in the higher parts of State.
Sources confirmed that the health centres situated in the mountainous parts of the State were running in the absence of the doctors. Well established sources revealed that the State Government has already urged Union Health Ministry to send medical officers to the flood-ravaged State.
The State has made a fresh request for 238 specialists in the fields of anaesthesia, surgery, general medicine, paediatrics and gynaecology. It is noteworthy that members of a medical team from the Centre are already stationed in Uttarakhand and two fresh teams with two members each drawn from National Centre for Disease Control and Central Government hospitals has been already sent to disaster-hit areas and three-member team from National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore, has also been deployed for relief work in the affected districts.
However, State Health Department claimed that 313 medial officers along with 4,977 paramedics have been employed in the disaster-hit areas. It is also equally important to mention here is that the 1,245 medical officers including contractual are working against the sanctioned post of 2,400 in the Garhwal and Kumaon division of Uttarakhand.
After considering the plight of the pilgrims and villagers, four teams of medical officers of Indian Medical Association, Uttarakhand Chapter was also sent to the disaster-hit areas.
One of the department sources who wished anonymity told The Pioneer that the despite facing the acute shortage of manpower in the State, the department has deployed the medical officers and para-medical staff along with life saving drugs to the disaster-hit areas of State. He cleared that the strict action would be surely taken against those medical officers, who did not join or found lethargic while performing their duties.