No hospital visit in Kalimpong, DM, CMO refused to meet: IMCT sources

The Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) visited Kalimpong on Saturday, however. it could not visit hospital or meet District Magistrate or Chief Medical Officer as they refused to meet the team, said IMCT sources.

Earlier in the day, the IMCT visited the house of a woman who lost her life due to COVID-19 in Kalimpong.

"IMCT North Bengal team visited Kalimpong today on their own after messaging West Bengal Chief Secretary, however, could not visit hospital or meet DM or CMO as they refused to meet the team," the IMCT sources told .

A 54-year-old woman from Kalimpong, who tested positive for COVID-19 at North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri, had passed away on March 30, said Dr Pralay Acharya, Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) Darjeeling.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said that investigation will be done regarding the woman's death in Kalimpong.

"We will investigate the death of Kalimpong woman. She had travelled to Chennai. Doctors in the certificate have written she died due to viral pneumonia. So, we will investigate. All fever cannot be called coronavirus. We will confirm when we get the investigation reports," Banerjee had said.

The IMCT has written to West Bengal Chief Secretary (CS) Rajiva Sinha, sharing its observations from spot visits in Howrah and raised issues with regard to quarantine centres and surveillance zones.In the letter to Sinha, IMCT head Apurva Chandra, Additional Secretary with the Central government, also enquired about personal protective equipment (PPE) stock and contact tracing and quarantine of individuals, who returned from Delhi's Markaz event.

( With inputs from ANI )