There is a 30 percent shortage of doctors in the national capital Delhi, Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj targeted the Lieutenant Governor by mentioning

Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj on Tuesday said that there is about 30 percent shortage of doctors and specialists in many hospitals and despite repeated requests to Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena, no efforts have been made to fill these crucial vacancies. Bhardwaj said that excuses like unavailability of the Chief Minister and non-conference of National Capital Civil Services Authority (NCCSA) are being given by the Lieutenant Governor’s office for the delay in appointment to these posts. He said this during a press conference, where he also discussed the steps taken by the Delhi government to deal with the spread of dengue. Hitting back at the minister, the Lieutenant Governor’s Secretariat alleged that Bhardwaj has “miserably failed” in handling the departments under his charge. It said, “It seems that now he has got a new opportunity to save his ministerial post by abusing the Lieutenant Governor every day without any basis.” The minister said that he has directed to take several measures to deal with the spread of dengue in the national capital. “We have asked to make awareness announcements at all metro stations, bus stands and other public transport hubs to inform people about the prevention of dengue,” the minister said. He stressed that it is very important that all government hospitals in the city are fully prepared to deal with dengue cases. Bhardwaj said that he has directed the Health Secretary to take several steps, but he is not completely sure whether those steps have been implemented. The minister said, “I have directed the Health Secretary to visit one government hospital every day to check whether all the necessary equipment related to dengue are available or not. However, I do not know whether these visits have started or not. If these (visits) have not started, I will personally visit the hospitals and ensure compliance.” Bhardwaj said he had a meeting with the health secretary and other officials on Friday where “I pointed out that my earlier instructions have not been implemented yet”. Bhardwaj alleged that whenever there is a major crisis in Delhi, documents show that Lt Governor V K Saxena is behind it. Highlighting the Asha Kiran shelter home case, where 13 inmates died in July, the minister said investigations revealed that there was a shortage of doctors and medical staff. “The responsibility for appointments lies with the Lt Governor. Since becoming a minister, I have written dozens of letters to the Lt Governor about the 30 per cent vacancies.