House owners in Chandigarh trying to evict doctors, nurses to face action

UT adviser warns of criminal prosecution while Mohali deputy commissioner too comes to the rescue

UT adviser Manoj Parida on Friday warned house owners of “criminal prosecution” if they harass or try to evict medical professionals or quarantined people staying on rent.

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“I have received two to three complaints from doctors and nursing staff of the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) and Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), requesting me to look into such cases. Also, we have guidelines from the Centre to ensure that health workers are not harassed,” he said, after having shared the warning on Twitter.

Parida said the administration has been granted “sweeping powers” under the Epidemic Diseases Act, and “no one will be spared in case they harass any health worker or those under quarantine”. “FIRs under relevant sections will be registered,” he said.

Highlighting one such incident, Dr Harinder Singh Bedi, a cardiologist at a private hospital in Mohali, said, “One of our senior nurses seemed quite upset, as he had been asked by the owner of his paying guest facility in Mohali to vacate the premises if he continued to work in hospital. This is unacceptable. If basic housing cannot be guaranteed to the front-line healthcare workers, where will we go?”

Shinder Pal Kaur Lidhar, president of the PGIMER nursing union, said, “Since coronavirus pandemic has reached India and cases have surfaced in Chandigarh, my neighbours’ attitude towards me has changed. Whenever I return from hospital, they look at me as if I have brought the disease along.”

Meanwhile, Mohali deputy commissioner Girish Dayalan has also directed house owners not to evict paying guests or tenants, especially those from out of the district and with nowhere to go, till the curfew or lockdown is lifted. The orders also ask house owners to not compel those living on rent to pay the dues, as public dealing of banks is closed.

(With inputs from Mohali)