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Kejriwal writes to PM Narendra Modi, seeks Bharat Ratna for medical fraternity
According to the Indian Medical Association estimate, 1,492 doctors have succumbed to Covid-19 pandemic.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider awarding the Bharat Ratna — India’s highest civilian award — collectively to health care professionals, including doctors, nurses and paramedics who have been on the front-line of India’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I want to request the central government to award this year’s Bharat Ratna to an “Indian doctor”. By an “Indian doctor”, I mean the entire medical community — all doctors, nurses and paramedics should be given the award, collectively,” CM Kejriwal said in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday.
He added that this was the best way to pay homage to all the people who lost their lives while serving the nation while on Covid-19 duty.
According to an estimate by the Indian Medical Association till late June, nearly 1,500 doctors in the country succumbed to the viral illness apart from a large number of other health care professionals.
The Bharat Ratna award is conferred every year in recognition of exceptional service/performance without distinction of race, occupation, position, or gender in arts, literature, science, public services or any field of human endeavour.
“What can be a better token of gratitude for them? If the current rules do not allow Bharat Ratna to be awarded to a community, then I urge you to tweak the rules. The entire country is grateful to doctors. If they are awarded Bharat Ratna, the whole nation will be pleased,” said Kejriwal in his letter, a copy of which HT has seen.
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
IMA data shows that deaths of 798 doctors — over 53% out of the total 1,492 deaths so far — were recorded during the second wave. The highest number of fatalities among doctors was reported from Delhi (128), followed by Bihar (115) and Uttar Pradesh (79).
The Kejriwal government has been providing ex-gratia compensation of ₹1 crore each to the families of front-line workers and doctors who lost their lives on Covid-19 duty. A Delhi government official said on condition of anonymity that 17 such grants have been made so far.
On July 1, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation to mark the National Doctors’ Day and said hundreds of thousands of lives in the country were saved during the devastating pandemic due to the efforts of doctors and health care workers.
(With inputs from agencies)
