Clash Over Opening A COVID-19 Quarantine Facility In Village Leaves One Man Dead In West Bengal
No matter which part of the world it is or what section of the society you belong to, getting to know that someone in the neighbourhood has tested positive for COVID-19 is going to trigger some panic - be it in a posh residential colony or a slum. '
But the panic over COVID-19 took a nasty turn in West Bengal, on Saturday, after violence broke out over setting up of a coronavirus quarantine camp in West Bengal's Birbhum district, leaving one man dead.?
The incident occurred in Talibpur village after a clash broke out between two groups of villagers. The administration decided to set up a quarantine centre for suspected COVID-19 cases at a school in the village; that did not go down well with a section of villagers, while others were in favour of it.An altercation on the issue between members of the two groups led to a clash and a middle-aged was killed.
Just a few days ago, there was an incident in Bihar¡¯s Sitamarhi district where a youth was beaten for informing authorities about two villagers who had returned from Mumbai who were not following home isolation.A village youth, Bablu Kumar Mahto, informed the local medical authorities that they could be infected following which they were taken for the test.This, however, did not go down well with the duo who later attacked and killed the youth.?
Bihar has been particularly affected by the mass reverse migration which was triggered by the 21-day nationwide lockdown announced by PM Narendra Modi.Despite the government asking them to remain in home isolation for two weeks, the authorities have failed to implement it and many have not even reported their return to the local health authorities. There have also been incidents where government officials and health workers who had gone to villages to collect the data, came under attack.?
Such incidents have been reported from across several parts of the country. The most infamous being the stone-pelting on health workers at Indore, Madhya Pradesh.A five-member team from the health department had gone to Taatpatti Bakhal on Wednesday, to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient, when an unruly mob attacked them with stones, injuring two female doctors.?
Taking note of the attack, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, warned that anti-social elements involved will not be spared at any cost.The police have arrested seven men, between the ages of 21 to 50 years, three of whom have a criminal record.?
