Revoke award given to Nallasopara hospital where 7 Covid patients died: BJP to Governor

Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on July 31 awarded Dr Ranjeet Upadhyay, medical director of Vinayaka Hospital in Nallasopara, with “Best hospital” award during an event at Raj Bhavan. Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Nallasopara unit has demanded that the award be taken back as seven Covid-19 patients died in the hospital on April 12 due to oxygen shortage.

A new controversy has erupted after Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on July 31 awarded Dr Ranjeet Upadhyay, medical director of Vinayaka Hospital in Nallasopara, with “Best hospital” award during an event at Raj Bhavan. Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Nallasopara unit has demanded that the award be taken back as seven Covid-19 patients died in the hospital on April 12 due to oxygen shortage.

Dr Ranjeet Upadhyay, director of Vinayaka Hospital, receive Best Hospital award from Governor BS Koshyari at Raj Bhavan.

The award was sponsored by a national Hindi newspaper and the event was attended by state health minister Rajesh Tope.

“It is surprising that the award was given to a hospital in Nallasopara where seven Covid patients died,” said Manoj Barot, a BJP worker who has written to the Governor. “We demand that the Governor take back the award,” he said.

Dr Sachin Jadhav, personal assistant to Tope, said, “The government has no role in the selection of the names of the awardees.”

Dr Upadhyay said, “The award was not self-recommended. I accepted it from the Governor with humility. The award was bestowed to my three-year-old hospital for the yeoman service to the community in providing medical services in 2020. We dedicated our hospital for Covid patients.”

He further said that Vasai Virar civic health department has given the hospital a clean chit and concluded the patients did not die of oxygen shortage.