Prasad urges Vardhan to facilitate setting up of two Covid-19

Minister of Law and Justice and Patna Sahib MP Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday appealed to Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan to facilitate the opening of two more Covid-19 testing centres in the state, amid a spurt in suspected cases.

Currently, Bihar has just one testing laboratory at Rajendra Memorial Research Institute (RMRI) in Patna.

An official release here said Prasad - who also holds the communications portfolio has urged the health minister to take note of the request to aid the opening of two testing centres one at Patna Medical College and Hospital and the other at Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences.

The Patna Sahib MP has been assured by Vardhan that instructions have issued in the matter and necessary equipment for IGIMS, Patna has been dispatched, the release said.

Three people have tested psotive for Covid-19 in Bihar, one of whom died on Saturday night, according to the State Health Societys bulletin.

Of the 194 samples collected so far, 175 tested negative for the disease while reports for 14 cases have not arrived as yet, the bulletin said.

Two samples have been rejected, it added.

An isolation centre will be set up at Bihta ESIC hospital in the state capital, the official release issued by Prasad said, contending that Union Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar has given his consent in the matter.

The Patna Sahib MP has further instructed superintendents of all top hospitals here to ensure that patients do no face any difficulty during the course of treatment, it said.

He has asked the Patna district administration to ensure steady availability of foodgrains and other essential items, the release added.