How grateful Indians can be in the face of a calamity of gargantuan proportions is evident from the fact how we are treating our gods i.e. Doctors. News reports have emerged that several doctors and other healthcare professionals around the country are being discriminated and harassed by landlords and neighbours. They are being ostracized and forced to evict their rented accommodations fearing Wuhan Virus infections.
The Resident Doctors’ Association (RDA) of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences made an urgent plea to Home Minister Amit Shah Tuesday requesting action against the eviction of healthcare professionals by landlords in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Delhi Commissioner of Police and asked him to take strict action against landlords asking doctors and nurses, treating patients, to vacate residences. #Coronavirus
— ANI (@ANI) March 24, 2020
So many incidents are coming to light of sincere govt doctors who are now being threatened to enter their own homes! Please look seriously into this matter@narendramodi sir.
Regards,
A govt doctor. pic.twitter.com/MmLHZejsjf— Dr. Devashish Palkar (@psychidiaries) March 23, 2020
The doctors had earlier taken to social media to narrate how they are being discriminated against in their housing complex or rented flats. As the news blew open on social media platforms, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah immediately took cognizance of the issue. He asked the Delhi Commissioner of Police S.N. Shrivastava to take immediate action to stop any such incidents, an official of the ministry said.
@AnantBhan @SKThakur56 @bhalomanush @BharatPronam @RemaNagarajan
This was the same thing the Director of @AIIMSBhubaneswr was appealing to the Landlords & public the other day, not to harass the Resident Doctors.
cc: @UnitedRda@arunbothra@narendramodi@drharshvardhan
— 🕉️ Prof. (Dr.) D. Datta 🇮🇳; MBBS*, MD* Anatomy (@ddatta16) March 24, 2020
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan whilst responding to the forcible evictions said in a statement “Deeply anguished to see reports pouring in from Delhi, Noida, Warangal, Chennai, etc that doctors and paramedics are being ostracised in residential complexes and societies. Landlords are threatening to evict them fearing Covid-19 infection. Please don’t panic,”
Deeply anguished to see reports pouring in from Delhi, Noida,Warangal,Chennai etc that doctors¶medics are being ostracised in residential complexes & societies. Landlords are threatening to evict them fearing #COVID2019 infection. Pls don’t panic!: Union Health Minister(file) pic.twitter.com/apXfPu283j
— ANI (@ANI) March 24, 2020
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal too expressed concern over the evictions.
What makes this situation a total mess is the fact that PM Modi had issued a rallying call to the citizens to come out of their homes to show gratitude to medical personnel’s on Janta curfew last Sunday by clapping and beating utensils. Entire India had come out at exactly 5 PM and made the whole event a resounding success.
So it is absolutely pathetic that the landlords have come to this. In testing times as such Doctors are the only ray of hope we have. The healthcare system is looking to be stretched thin in the coming times and if we treat them as such, their morale’s would take a dip. The doctors are constantly putting their lives on the line and if we as a society resort to such foolish behaviour, maybe we don’t deserve them.
A few days earlier some injudicious neighbours and vigilante Resident Welfare Associations (RWA) were found targeting and harassing the Air India crew members. In an official press statement released by the Air India, the company had said that some vigilante RWA’s had been ostracising its crew members–who had been abroad to help out in rescue operations. The airline and its crew left no stone unturned to bring the stranded Indians from the epicentres of Wuhan Virus-like Rome, Milan, Iran and last but not the least Wuhan.
It is indeed very unfortunate that some miscreant elements are trying to pile more misery on the nation in such turbulent times. From the doctors to nurses to airline crews they all are heroes. The imbeciles need to stop ostracizing them and instead help them to go on about their jobs. They are slogging in the field in the most challenging scenarios for us so that we stay safe. “Stay home and show some goddamn empathy” How difficult is this advice to follow? But as it turns out, it’s a near-impossible task for some Indians.
