Mumbai, Dec 13 (IANS): For the fourth consecutive day, the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) protested against the Maharashtra Government over the spate of deaths in public hospitals in the last few months.

Leaders of the Congress-Shiv Sena (UBT)-Nationalist Congress Party (SP) symbolically sported stethoscopes, surgical masks and oxygen masks, and raised slogans attacking Health Minister Tanaji Sawant for the sorry state of government-run hospitals in the state, stood outside the Legislature on Tuesday.

Leader of Opposition (Assembly) Vijay Wadettiwar and Leader of Opposition (Council) Ambadas Danve carried placards bearing the statistics of fatalities that occurred in several public hospitals in the recent past at Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nanded, Chandrapur and Thane, the home-town of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Decrying the state of the government hospitals where scores of deaths took place in August-October, Danve said that the time has come now to examine the health of the government which has ruined the peoples’ well-being.

In mid-August, around 27 patients died at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital at Thane in a span of barely 48 hours, sparking a furore in the state.

In October, at least 24 people, including 12 infants died at the Dr. Shankarrao Chavan Government Medical College & Hospital, Nanded, allegedly owing to a paucity of medicines and medical supplies.

The same month, some 18 patients succumbed at the Government Medical College & Hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, barely two days after the Nanded tragedy, leading to a huge political fracas.