Union min triggers row over skipping quarantine at B’luru

Union min triggers row over skipping quarantine at B’luru

K’taka Promptly Issues Order To Spare Ministers

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bengaluru:26.05.2020

Union minister D V Sadananda Gowda, who flew from New Delhi to Bengaluru on Monday, courted a major controversy by not going into institutional quarantine as mandated by the Karnataka government and later defending it saying the stipulation does not apply to "those who hold certain responsible posts" and that his functioning comes under essential services.

Echoing Gowda, Karnataka school education minister and state Covid-19 spokesman S Suresh Kumar also said, "He is exempted (from quarantine) as a minister handling the pharma sector. Relevant order will be posted soon."

According to the Karnataka government’s SOP, Delhi is among the six states and UTs with high incidence of Covid-19 and travellers from these places have to mandatorily remain in institutional quarantine for a minimum of seven days.

In an addendum to the SOP issued in the evening, the government clarified that Union and state ministers and officials on duty travelling across states are exempted from quarantine. Health professionals too come under this category.

Soon after arriving, Gowda was seen being escorted out of the airport terminal and led to a private car that sped away. Later, the minister told a news agency, "The guidelines on quarantine are applicable to all citizens but there are certain exemption clauses, for those who hold certain responsible posts."

My portfolio comes under essential services: Gowda

Union minister D V Sadananda Gowda told TOI: “My functioning as minister for chemicals and fertilisers comes under essential services. Also, I oversee the pharmaceutical sector and am monitoring the availability of medicines in the Covid-19 context. “I also interact with various ministries and state governments. So my role has been classified among the exempted category and I need not undergo quarantine. It is not advisable to confine a Union minister at home for 14 days or so when the need of the hour is my active participation in the war against the pandemic.”

Gowda said he has undergone Covid-19 tests once every three days. “I have a Covid-19 negative certificate issued by AIIMS, Delhi. I have downloaded Aarogya Setu app on my mobile and registered on it and on Seva Sindhu. Being a Union minister I could have taken a special flight, but I made it a point to use a scheduled flight for the sake of austerity,” he said. “If the supply of medicines and other things is not proper, then what can doctors do? It is my responsibility to ensure the supply of medicines to each corner of the country. If I don’t supply proper medicines, coronavirus will double, triple...,” he was quoted by another news agency as saying.