New Delhi, Apr 22 (IANS): Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla has written to all the chief secretaries in the states, urging them to ensure adequate security of the healthcare professionals and frontline workers involved in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked the states to take strict action against those obstructing the last rites of medical professionals or frontline healthcare workers succumbing to Covid-19 while discharging their duties.

The advisory comes in pursuance of earlier MHA directives to all the states and Union Territories issued on March 24 and April 11, requesting them to ensure adequate protection to healthcare professionals, medical staff and frontline workers by augmenting their safety and security cover.

The states and UTs have been asked to widely publicise the details of the preventive measures taken by them to ensure compliance at the ground level.

The MHA said that despite previous communications, some incidents of violence have been reported from different parts of the country against healthcare professionals and frontline workers.

It is evident that at this time, any single incident of violence against healthcare professionals is likely to create a sense of insecurity among the entire healthcare fraternity, Bhalla wrote the letter.

He also cited Supreme Court's direction on April 8 in which it observed that the Government of India, respective states UTs and respective police authorities should provide necessary police security to the doctors and medical staff in hospitals and places where patients who have been diagnosed with Covid-19 or suspect cases are housed.