West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday, 20 May, hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after attending a meeting that was held to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the country.
Dubbing the meeting “super flop”, Mamata said:
“PM claimed in the COVID meeting that the caseload is reducing, then why so many deaths still?”
Alleging that the chief ministers of various states were not allowed to speak in the virtual meeting, Banerjee told reporters that they experienced “humiliation”, as they were treated like puppets.
“If states were not allowed to speak, why were they called? All the chief ministers must protest for not being allowed to speak.”
She further, as per ANI, asked: “Is the Prime Minister feeling so insecure that he did not bother to listen to the chief ministers?”
Since February, this is the first meeting by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that is being attended by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, reported ANI.
What Else Did Mamata Banerjee Say?
Banerjee was further reported to have said:
- Even though the rate of vaccination is low in Bengal, their positivity rate is reducing.
- West Bengal’s fatality rate is at 0.9%.
- West Bengal has four cases of Black Fungus in the state.
Also stating that she will keep her promise and provide vaccines to all people if she gets them, Banerjee added: “But they are not providing doses.”
She also alleged that the PM is “busy making big buildings and statues of his, while people are dying”.
“They are sending a rental team over to West Bengal in the name of post-poll violence, why not in UP where bodies are floating in the river?”Mamata Banerjee
‘Shameful’: Ex Aide Suvendu Adhikari Hits Out at Mamata
Meanwhile, reacting to Mamata Banerjee’s criticism, her former aide Suvendu Adhikari claimed that she had "once again shown her total disinterest in administration" and politicised the PM's meeting with District Magistrates.
“To state clearly, PM Modi has held numerous meetings with chief ministers in the last few months, how many did Mamata Banerjee attend? ZERO. Now, she hijacks a PM-DM meet to say she was denied a chance to speak. Shameful!”Suvendu Adhikari
More About The Meeting
At the meeting that took place on Thursday morning, officials from 54 districts, nine of which are from Bengal, as well as officials from the Union Health Ministry were reported to have taken part.
Banerjee had skipped the last meeting PM Modi had held with the chief ministers of several states on 23 April, saying that she had not been invited.
What PM Modi Said
PM Modi, in the meeting, asked district officials to collect data on children and young people being infected with COVID-19 in the second wave.
“Concerns have been raised for young people and children due to the mutation of the virus. I request you to collect data related to infection among youth and children in your district and review it continuously.”
The Prime Minister also acknowledged the hard work of district-level officials and cautioned them against underestimating the deadly virus.
Mamata Writes To Modi On Urgent Need for Vaccines
Meanwhile, Mamata Banerjee on Thursday also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to provide at least 20 lakh doses of COVID-19 vaccine for inoculation of all state and Central government employees.
Banerjee, in her letter, also claimed that the Centre's policies have "no room to accommodate the needs" of people who run a greater risk of contracting the viral disease, including bankers, railway and airport employees, and those working in defence or coal sectors. She also asked the PM to make adequate number of doses available for personnel engaged in “priority sectors” without any further delay.
“In Bengal, we have taken steps to vaccinate a large section of frontline and electorally-engaged employees across several sectors. We still need minimum 20 lakh doses to cover all employees.”
(With inputs from ANI, PTI and The Indian Express.)
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