Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) Friday appointed social activist and advocate Pradeep Kumar Patnaik to enquire into the allegations of denial of treatment to patients suffering from serious diseases like cancer on the ground of Covid test.
The director of Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Center (AHRCC) in Cuttack has also been asked to cooperate with Patnaik during the investigation.
This apart, the OHRC ordered the AHRCC director, Secretary state Health and Family Welfare department, Superintendent of SCB medical College and Hospital and the Director Medical Education and Treatment to submit a separate enquiry report to the commission within three days.
The commission took cognizance of the incident after a person complained to the OHRC Chairperson Justice Bimal Prasad Das about the distress condition of some of the cancer patients as the authorities of AHRCC refused to conduct urgently required surgical interventions because the patients have not undergone Covid-19 test.
The Commission also expressed annoyance over the news reports about a lady from Jajpur suffering from profuse bleeding who was made to shuttle between AHRCC and SCB Medical College for treatment.
The commission remarked, “This is a matter of life and death of the cancer patients who are not directly connected with the Covid-19.”
The Commission has requested the Vice –Chairman of AHRCC, Cuttack to look into the matter seriously and also ensure a strict compliance of protocol set by the state government.
