Yogi, Akhilesh trade charges over dengue 'outbreak'

Lucknow, Nov 29 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said during the ongoing Assembly session on Wednesday that the dengue situation was under control in the state because of his government’s timely action.

Leader of opposition Akhilesh Yadav countered the claim by asking that who was responsible for the deaths caused by the mosquito-borne disease.

“It seems he has an MBBS degree',” the Samajwadi Party chief mocked the Chief Minister.

Yadav claimed that dengue patients were running from one hospital to the other in the state capital yet dying in the absence of adequate treatment.

Responding to the allegations, the Chief Minister said, “Dengue is in control because of the steps taken by the government in time. Blood separator units have been given to all the districts. The government has been running special campaigns three times a year to check vector and water-borne diseases.”

“We do not give help by seeing the face, caste or religion, but extend support from the CM discretionary fund to every needy citizen,” Adityanath said in an apparent dig at the SP, which he has often accused of discriminating against people on caste and religious lines.

“The problem is politicising all issues and creating disorder and dissatisfaction in the society... We have seen this during the coronavirus outbreak, when you people were misguiding people against taking vaccine, terming it as ‘Modi vaccine,” Adityanath said.

Earlier, raising the issue in the state Assembly, Lalji Verma, Akhilesh Yadav and others alleged that dengue has taken thousands of lives in the state.

They also attacked Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, alleging that he spends more time doing work with other departments than with his own.

Pathak holds the health portfolio in the state government.

The opposition also demanded compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the families of the dengue victims and reimbursement of the expenditure incurred in private hospitals if they took treatment there.

“The government, which is not able to provide treatment for dengue, is dreaming of a $1 trillion economy,” said Yadav.

“It was because of the incapability of the government which led to looting, with patients being forced to go to private hospitals having failed to get treatment in government hospitals,” he added.