Queue deaths: CM Mamata Banerjee pledges jobs to kin

Kolkata: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced in the Assembly that her government would provide jobs to one member from the families of two aged men who recently died while waiting in the queue to withdraw their money would get job in her government.

Her announcement came during the Question Hour in the House. She said the son of Shibu Mandi, a farmer in Kalna of Burdwan, would get a job in the state panchayat department while the widow of Kallol Roy Chowdhury in Behala would get a job in another department.

Roy Chowdhury died of a cardiac arrest while standing in a queue to an ATM in Bandel of Hooghly recently. Slamming the Modi government at the Centre the chief minister alleged that they were simply giving lectures while there were no banks in 92 per cent of the villages in the country.

She also attacked the Centre for denying a grant of around Rs 2,500 crore under the National Food Security Act. “We have already written to the Centre to get the amount. But they have denied on both the occasions,” Ms Banerjee said expressing her anguish. She also voiced her concern over the unavailability of doctors at the government hospitals.

“There is crisis about getting doctors. Even though we need them urgently, they are not available. At present we have around 14000 doctors and nurses. We are planning to add 6000 more to the figure. For this we are trying to rope in doctors from other states so that they can get registration here and start working at the government hospitals,” Ms Banerjee said.

She informed that there were seven medical colleges in our state with a total number of 27000 beds. “We have proposed to set up five more,” the chief minister added.