By Afshain Afzal

India’s Union Health Ministry on Saturday announced that anyone can get admitted in COVID-19 designated hospital and there is no requirement of a positive COVID-19 test report. Functional hospitals like Community Health Centres (CHC) and others, which are handling regular and non-COVID cases have been designated as COVID Care Centres (CCC).

Meanwhile, foreign health and International Non Government Organizations (IGNO) and others aid groups have expressed serious doubt on data furnished by Indian Health authorities regarding COVID-19 positive cases and deaths due to COVID. One of the member of aid group spoke on the condition of anonymity that state provided videos of extreme alarming situation throughout India proved to be fake. Indian Health authorities recently shared data that the number of cases across the country surged by a record daily rise of 349,691 case with a total of 16.96 million cases including 192,311 deaths, however, these figures could not be verified by any authentic source. The foreign members of aid group found that on ground many hospital beds are empty or unoccupied with no COVID-19 patient at all. The hospital data also reflected the same and authenticated apprehensions.

The Indian health authorities have declared positive COVID-19 test report as non-mandatory for admission to a health facility throughout the country.

In a written intimation, the Union Health Ministry in its revised national policy for admission of COVID patients to various dedicated health facilities, both public and private exempted requirement of a positive COVID-19 test report for admission to a health facility and directed that no patient will be refused services on any account, including oxygen and essential drugs, even if he or she belongs to a different city.

The directive to all the states and Union Territories said, "Hospitals under the central government, state governments and UT administration, including private hospitals managing COVID patients, shall ensure that requirement of a positive test for COVID-19 virus is not mandatory for admission to a COVID health facility. A suspect case shall be admitted to the suspect ward of COVID Care Centre (CCC), Dedicated COVID Health Centre (DCHC) of Dedicated COVID Hospital (DHC) as the case may be,” It said, "No patient shall be refused admission on the ground that he/she is not able to produce a valid identity card that does not belong to the city where the hospital is located."

In the same regard, the Health Ministry has issued letters to all the chief secretaries of states/Union territories to issue necessary orders and circulars, incorporating these directions within three days, which shall be enforced till replaced by an appropriate uniform policy.

Countries across the world as well as the World health Organization and other International Organizations are contributing best they could do in global efforts to send urgent life-saving supplies to India, following the rapid resurgence of COVID-19 in the country. Critical equipment such as oxygen concentrators, oxygen cylinders, electric syringe pumps, medical respirator masks and therapeutics and other equipments have been arriving in India through diplomatic and non-diplomatic channels to treat patients and save lives. Over a billion dollar has so far been contributed by generous countries The WHO and other International groups technical staff arrived in India under various programmes and aid packages distribution filed to find situation that alarming as being reflected by the State authorities. One wonders how can any nation plat with the sentiment of world community by claiming fake deaths and alarming out of control situation.