Bengaluru: Indian Army denies setting up 1000-bed COVID facility

Bengaluru: Indian Army on Saturday denied news that went viral on social media that it had set up a 1000-bed hospital for COVID-19 patients in Bengaluru. Reacting to this, Indian Army clarified that it was fake message and there's no such initiative as of now.

According to Defence sources, the news was about a COVID-19 hospital opened last year at the Terminal 1 in domestic airport in Delhi. Mischievous elements tweaked the news and copy-pasted it on social media. "So, we request that the message may kindly not be forwarded further as it is Misinformative."

"Bringing it to your notice that from today onwards 1000 beds facility is initiated by Armed Forces, w.e.f 0800 hrs today for admission of all confirmed Carona Patients, who need immediate hospitalisation.

This state-of-the-art, 1000-bed Covid Care Hospital is very close to Domestic Airport T1. This facility is meant to extend a helping hand to all civilian brethren and ex-servicemen. Everything is FREE. Manned by critical care specialists, pulmonologists, doctors and nursing officers of the Indian Armed Forces," the viral message read.

It also suggested that the facility was located next to Raksha Sampada Bhavan and that the patient needs to carry his/her Aadhaar card and a positive RT-PCR report for admission. It also listed officers in charge of the facility and provided contact numbers of two officials, one of whom was supposedly from HAL in Bengaluru.

The viral message went viral after Bengaluru Central MP PC Mohan wrote to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asking for a 1000-bed COVID-19 treatment facility to be opened in Bengaluru by the armed forces. But such a facility is not yet established in Bengaluru.

Bengaluru has many Defence establishments, including the Command Hospital run by the IAF and other medical centres. I request your kind self that armed forces units may hereby be instructed to set up Covid Care Centres, medical care centres and to reserve a portion of total beds to the general public," Mohan wrote.

Recently, Bengaluru-based Whitefield Rising has appealed to the government to explore the possibility of adding more Covid centres in the city using resources from the armed forces.