Neros who play fiddle when States burn

Something is grossly wrong with our politicians, particularly when they come to power. Bihar, West Bengal, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are the latest examples of power-drunk leadership which does not care about the welfare of the people.

More than 50 children died in Bihar due to a kind of encephalitis. Those deaths could have been avoided had the Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, concentrated on good governance rather than on politics.

A pattern of good governance ensures that there is always some supervision over every department, and it need not demand the attention of the Chief Minister day in and day out. Similar is the case of AP Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, a rookie administrator.

He is fully engrossed in implementing his 'Navratnas', welfare benefits he has announced before the elections to the people of the State and is basking in the glory of public attention. He is so busy that he did not have time to think of the health and medicare issues dogging the State.

This is summer, a horrible summer at that. Old and young alike are falling victims to the high temperatures on the one hand. Hospitals are not equipped to the full capacity to deal with the emergencies despite being specialty centres as in case of Anantapur Government Hospital where 11 children reportedly died.

This is not a good beginning, and no one can boast of being good administrator while allowing such avoidable tragedies. We have the case of West Bengal, where Mamata Banerjee has turned so blind with rage against the opponents that she tends to ignore the attacks on doctors too and in turn warns the protesting doctors of consequences.

What would one say of such lowly missionary zeal of politicians? The least that the Chief Minister could have done is ordering an enquiry and assuring the doctors of protection. Instead she began accusing the local unit of the BJP and the Centre of politics.

Unfortunately, she has taken a political stand ignoring the facts. As a result, not only the doctors have gone on strike, 69 of them have resigned in West Bengal. In all, 4,500 doctors in Maharashtra too protested in solidarity. Hospitals across, Delhi, Mumbai, Rajasthan, Kerala and Telangana too have gone on protests. Mamata has truly made this a national issue.

Patients across India are now suffering. Healthcare services have taken a hit across the country. What a pity that she does not even realise that Telangana, Rajasthan, Delhi and Kerala are not ruled by the BJP, but by the TRS, the Congress, AAP and the Congress respectively.

Next, we had recently seen the plight of the Intermediate students in Telangana. About 51 students committed suicide following faulty evaluation of their papers by the Intermediate Board yet the Chief Minister maintained a stoic silence. Nobody is accountable anywhere in the country.

Yet these are all honourable men and women. These are our popular leaders and given a chance, they would like to rule the country itself alas!