Just festive pretense: Rahul Gandhi targets Centre over handling of COVID-19 situation
New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday hit out the Centre over the handling of the COVID-19 situation and alleged that it is only indulging in a "sham" of a 'vaccine festival'. He also alleged that there is no testing and no beds in hospitals. The Congress MP also took a jibe asking what Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund Trust is doing, as huge donations were given to the fund for handling the COVID-19 situation.
"There are no tests or beds in hospitals. There are no ventilators or oxygen. The vaccine is also not there. But there is a sham of a festival. PM-CARES?" he asked. His attack came after India celebrated the 'Tika Utsav' or vaccine festival from April 11 to 14. Amid the surge in COVID-19 cases across the country, several states have stated that there is a shortage of beds, ventilators, oxygen, and vaccines. They also reached out to the Centre for help as many claimed that their stocks for vaccination will not last for long.
India reported its highest-ever single-day spike in COVID-19 with over 2 lakh cases on Thursday, according to the Union Health Ministry. With 2,00,739 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, India recorded the highest single-day spike ever since the pandemic began last year. The country's total number of cases now stands at 1,40,74,564, including 14,71,877 active cases.
