The Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Tuesday condemned the ‘failure’ of the State Government in dealing with multiple crises emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Apart from shortage of quarantine centres and lack of adequate facilities in the existing ones, the Congress criticized the government for ‘relaxation’ to let in a large number of labourers from outside and exposing the local people to the novel coronavirus.
Reacting to a Facebook video reportedly showing the inflow of labourers from COVID-19 affected neighbouring states, APCC general secretary Mina Toko said ‘letting the labourers in when the positive cases are rising rapidly will not only risk the lives of the locals but also exert pressure on the state’s facilities, manpower and financial health’.
“Bringing labourers in large numbers from outside without proper arrangement is not acceptable. It clearly exposes the state government’s priority to the completion of money-minting private and government projects over hunger, poverty, loss of livelihood and household income of the poor,” Toko said in a statement.
The Congress leader said, ‘the nature and course of COVID-19 in the State is changing as frontline workers and service institutions are under threat.”
“Hospitals, banks, police stations are shutting down as COVID-19 positive cases among frontline workers and service providers are rapidly increasing in comparison to civilians. The State may soon run out of manpower and the people will be left vulnerable,” Toko said.
She slammed the State Government for ‘completely failing’ in tackling the pandemic with erratic decisions since the virus invaded the State.
She also demanded accountability of the CM Care Fund, financial assistance from the Centre, contribution from the MLAs from their area development funds, donations from the people and pay deducted from the employees ostensibly for combating the virus.