Pul upset over 'ill-treatment' to Aruchalees

FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT

Itagar, June 6: Aruchal Pradesh Chief Minister Kalikho Pul on Sunday visited the Aruchal Bhawan here at vi Mumbai and expressed concern over the “ill-treatment” being meted out to Aruchalee patients and students staying in the building. During his inspection of the living conditions at the Aruchal Bhavan, the CM observed that the US Roofs Ltd that shared the 17-storied building with occupants from the state had denied them access to hygienic living conditions.

Patients complained that the company had reportedly denied the access to lifts for commuting between the floors and were denied entry to the building through the main entrance, an official communiqué said here today. The chief minister regretted over such ‘discrimition’ being meted out to Aruchali people on account of non-payment of certain maintence bills.

“If at all the company has genuine grievances, it could have directly reported it to Aruchal government rather than giving mental harassment to the patients and people residing in the Bhawan,” the chief minister observed.

He said that the agreement, on the basis of which the buildings were shared between the government of Aruchal and US Roof, would be revisited and the number of rooms allotted to the state government would be increased from the existing 8.

He also regretted that the land, which the CIDCO had allotted for construction of Aruchal Bhawan, was being mainly being used to accommodate corporate offices.

The government of Maharashtra in 1997 had allotted the land for the purpose of construction of an Aruchal Bhawan, cum sales emporium. However, Aruchal being a state with a very low revenue base, could not start construction of the Bhawan because of which pelties were imposed for not meeting the construction deadline set by the CIDCO, Pul informed and added that in later years the construction was done on PPP mode.

The chief minister earlier met the patients who were mostly undergoing treatment for cancer at the Tata Memorial Hospital. He asked them to apply for treatment expenses to be covered under Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) and assured that the state government would provide maximum assistance for their treatment costs.

Pul visited each patient in their rooms, enquired on their health and status of treatment, and inspected the condition of the toilets and bathrooms. He contributed fincially to the patients through his persol means for immediate expenses of treatment.  

The patients expressing their grievances told the chief minister that it was becoming difficult for them to travel 30 kms every day to Tata Memorial hospital. In response, Pul assured to provide them with an ambulance fully equipped with life saving devices. Also in response to the CM’s directions, US Roof agreed to arrange 20 rooms for Aruchali patients near the Tata Memorial Hospital where most patients were being treated for cancer. The patients reported that hospitals in Mumbai did not have coverage of CM Universal Health Insurance Scheme and therefore none of them could avail the insurance benefits. To that the Pul assured that the health department would be asked to carry out the process of empanelment of hospitals in Maharashtra. Also responding to the problems faced by Aruchali visitors to Mumbai, he announced that a deputy resident commissioner along with all the supporting staffs would be posted soon, the communiqué added.