Opposition questions Bengal health infrastructure

Kolkata, Mar 21 (UNI) Opposition members in the West Bengal Assembly today lambasted the ruling Left Front for its "failure" to improve the state healthcare services and sought to know the rationale behind treating VIPs in private hospitals instead of government ones.

Raising the issue of the treatment of CPI(M) West Bengal State Secretary Anil Biswas in a private nursing home, Trinmamol Congress Chief Whip Sovandeb Chattopadhyay and his Congress counterpart Asit Mitra referred to the poor medicare services and non-availability of several life saving instruments even in the state's best referrel hospital.

It was very unfortunate that despite having all facilities in the P G hospital,Mr Biswas was taken to a leading private nursing home for emergency treatment after suffering a cerebral attack, Mr Chattopadhyay said and wondered under similar condition whether the state's poor masses could afford such costly treatment.

Both the leaders also urged the government to immediately 'wake up from the slumber' and make efforts to improve the healthcare system to bring it at par with the best in the country.

Later participating in the same debate, CPI(M) legislator M Khatun denied the opposition charges and claimed it was another attempt to disrespect the success of the 29-year-old Left Front rule in the state.

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