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Taking corrective measures: Rajasthan CM on infant deaths
Gehlot’s government has been facing severe criticism for deaths of more than 100 infants in government hospitals in Rajasthan.
Chief minister (CM) of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, while admitting that the deaths of infants in Kota and other parts of Rajasthan was a serious issue, said the government has been taking corrective measures, which have resulted in a drop in infant and maternal mortality rates in the state. He said the mortality rate in other parts of the country, too, was high and Rajasthan was not among the top 10 worst affected states.
Gehlot’s government has been facing severe criticism for deaths of more than 100 infants in government hospitals in Rajasthan.
Gehlot’s party colleague and deputy CM of the state, Sachin Pilot, too, has taken a potshot at the government saying they cannot escape the responsibility. Speaking to HT on Sunday, during his Mumbai visit, Gehlot said the issue “should not be politicised”.
“There were infant mortality cases in Rajkot in Gujarat and Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh too. When Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani was questioned about the 1,234 deaths in his state and his own district, he averted the media. I do not want to politicise the issue, but I would request all parties to join hands to tackle these issues. If there are any loopholes and criticism, it should be taken positively to ensure that they are addressed properly,” said Gehlot.
The Rajasthan CM said neonatal intensive care units were launched in Kota and other parts of the state in 2011, when he was the CM.
“It has helped us reduce infant deaths. We launched state-of-the-art machinery for medical treatment of patients. We have the best medical facilities in the country. With the recently launched Nirogi Rajasthan scheme, we are augmenting the medical facilities,” he said.
Gehlot, who met Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar in Mumbai on Sunday, also said that the formation of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government in Maharashtra has proved to be a “setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership”.
“The coming together of the three parties in the state was the need of the hour and was in the interest of India and its stakeholders like industrialists, traders, farmers and the poor. The formation of the government [in Maharashtra] has not only helped the Congress boost its morale across the country, but has also pushed back the BJP on their aim of diminishing others. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stopped talking about Congress-mukt Bharat since then. People have started standing by the Congress, which was witnessed during our Bharat Bachao rally in Delhi and in other states on the party’s foundation day,” he said.
Gehlot is believed to have played a major role in the formation of the three-party government in Maharashtra and in convincing the party’s high command to join hands with the Sena in the state. The Rajasthan CM said that the BJP’s attempt to topple the government will not succeed.
“The BJP has been exposed fully in the past five years after its attempt to grab power through illicit means in states like Goa and Manipur. They will not succeed in any other state. Maharashtra government will last its term as it’s in the interest of the state and the country,” he said.
The Rajasthan CM also said that the Modi government has been trying to divert the issue of dropping gross domestic product (GDP), rising unemployment and poor investment by introducing “sentimental issues” like the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and National Register of Citizens (NRC).
He slammed the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), stating that it should “stop playing an extra-constitutional role to push its Hindutva agenda and instead, enter politics openly”.
“None of the non-BJP states will implement CAA-NRC as these policies are against the fundamental structure of the Constitution,” he said.
