With coronavirus scare gripping the State, West Bengal State Election Commission has called an all-party meeting on Monday to discuss the future of upcoming Statewide municipal elections which were scheduled to take place sometime in mid-April.
According to sources, the ruling Trinamool Congress is likely to suggest a postponement of the elections till situations improved. The BJP too has expressed its viewpoint on the issue with the State party president Dilip Ghosh saying “when there is a national emergency like this the party will always stand by the SEC decision if it decides to push back the election date.”
Sources said the TMC will carry a message from the State Government to the SEC advising a adjournment of the poll process “since it will involve a lot of risk as the workers and leaders will go around to meet people leading to random physical contacts,” said a senior TMC leader and a Minister adding “the rest will depend upon the Commission.
CPI(M)’s Sujan Chakrabarty said his party would join the Monday’s meeting and take a decision only after hearing the proposal adding however that “public health is the first and foremost priority.”
Bengal has come to a near standstill following a State Government advisory to shut down educational and other institutions in anticipation of COVID-19 proliferation. Even Calcutta High Court put a moratorium on daily proceedings (save urgent hearings) till March 20.
All educational institutions, including schools and colleges, both public and private have declared a close-down from Monday following State-Government directive. All university examinations have been postponed except the ongoing Class XII Board examinations which started on March 13.
The shutdown will continue till March 31 when the Government would take further decision considering the status of corona virus infections in the country.
Other institutions like the Indian Museum, the museum Victoria Memorial have also been shut down, sources said.
The Ramakrishna Mission headquarters at Belur Math have also announced a partial ban on mass congregation inside the sanctum sanctorum of the Math building, sources said.
Apart from issuing shut-down notices the State Government has made elaborate arrangements for treatment of any COVID-19 infected patients.
“Quarantine wards have been created besides the Beleghata ID Hospital and SSKM Hospital at the newly constructed Chittaranjan Cancer Institute at New
Town,” a Health Department official said, adding all the district hospitals have been asked to keep ready their quarantine wards. At least eight patients have been kept in quarantine at the Beleghata ID Hospital, sources said.
Earlier the pathological samples of six suspected patients have been reported negative.
Meanwhile, to add salt to wound Swine flu has invaded Bengal. About 13 people, including two children have been infected with the virus, Health Department sources said adding a woman from Manipur and two children — a 10-year-old girl from Hooghly district and a 23-month-old from Odisha — were being treated for swine flu at a private hospital in South Kolkata.
All “the patients are being treated at the private hospital. The State Government is in constant touch with the authorities of the medical institution,” the official said, adding a man, who had returned to Murshidabad from Saudi Arabia last week, was detected with swine flu and was being treated for the disease.