Bengal allotted 1/5th of what Guj is getting: TMC on Remdesivir quota

Kolkata: Hitting out at the BJP-led Centre, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home minister Amit Shah hate Bengal as they allotted only one-fifth quantity of Remdesivir to the state, compared to the amount allocated for Gujarat.

As per the data released by the Centre in connection with state-wise "revised allocation" of Remdesivir vials for the period between April 21 and 30, the Centre allotted 165000 of the same to Gujarat while Bengal's allocation is only 32000.

The allocation was made despite the outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee having written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 stating that 'the supply of essential medicines like Remdesivir and Tocilizumab (Actemera) is extremely scarce and uncertain', causing a matter of grave concern for doctors in the state. "We need around 6000 vials of Remdesivir and 1000 vials of Tocilizumab daily. However, at present only 1000 vials of Remdesivir are available daily and no fresh supply of Tocilizumab is coming. It may kindly be seen that the relevant authorities step up their efforts to ensure steady supply of these most essential medicines as soon as possible," Banerjee's letter read.

On Sunday, TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien tweeted: "MO-SHA HATE Bengal. @MamataOfficial asked the Centre to not divert oxygen produced in the state. We are being penalised for forward planning. Now Centre allots only 32000 vials of #Remdesivir to Bengal, one-fifth of Gujarat (165000). Gujarat to receive 2nd highest doses in country."

According to a TMC leader, the allocation for Bengal is less despite its population being more than that of Gujarat. "The population of Gujarat is around 6.27 crore and it is 10 crore in Bengal. The population density is only 308 per square km when it is 1,029 per square km in Bengal," the leader said.