Tent owner takes back beddings ‘ordered’ for coronavirus patients

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, March 13

High drama was witnessed at Swami Vivekananda Rehabilitation Centre at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH) here on Friday when the tent house owner hired for providing beddings to suspected coronavirus patients arriving at Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport from other countries, took the material back after he came to know about this.

The tent house owner said the district administration told him that the beddings were for a team of doctors visiting at GNDH. However, later he came to know that it was for suspected coronavirus patients. “We issue beddings for functions and not for patients. It would ruin our business if anyone knows about this. Moreover, the person who came to hire the beddings did not inform us that the arrangements were being made for Covid patients,” said Rajiv Gupta, owner of the tent house. He said the person who approached him for beddings switched off his mobile. Perturbed over this, the tent house owner took away all the material from the hospital without informing the hospital authorities.

The district administration decided to keep the NRIs and foreign nationals coming from China, Iran, Italy, Korea, France, Spain, Germany and other countries, where Covid has spread its tentacles, under observation for 14 days.

The administration decided to keep them in the rehabilitation centre at GNDH where arrangements were being made for their stay. They would keep them in isolation for the period.

Dr Prabhdeep Kaur, Civil Surgeon, said that there was nothing serious as alternate arrangements were already made. “The shopkeeper panicked after knowing that it was for suspected patients. We understand this. We have made the required arrangements,” she said.