Hyderabad, May 10 (IANS): Covid patients from Andhra Pradesh were on Monday stopped from entering Telangana by the police, citing shortage of beds and oxygen in Hyderabad's hospitals.
Telangana police stopped ambulances bringing Covid patients from the neighbouring state to Hyderabad for advanced treatment.
Ambulances were stopped on inter-state borders in Mahabubnagar and Nalgonda districts. Police were also checking the vehicles at toll gates to stop entry of Covid patients.
The sudden move caused severe hardships to critically ill patients. People accompanying them were seen pleading Telangana police to allow them to proceed to Hyderabad.
The police officials insisted that they produce letters from hospitals where they would be seeking the treatment. They said only in cases where hospitals give in writing that they will be allotted beds and treated, they will allow them to travel to Hyderabad.
An ambulance carrying a critically ill patient from Mydukur in Kadapa district was stopped in Mahabubnagar district. After waiting for two hours at the border, the ambulance returned to Mydukur.
A woman from Anantapur accompanying her Covid positive husband broke down while requesting the police to allow them to proceed towards Hyderabad. "At the time of bifurcation (of united Andhra Pradesh) you said Telugu people are one. What is happening now," she asked the chief ministers of both the Telugu states.
Telangana BJP spokesman Krishna Sagar Rao urged the state government to allow critically ill patients from other states on humanitarian grounds. "It's fair to give priority to Telangana people in hospital admissions but in this crisis critical patients from other states should be allowed to get treatment in Hyderabad," he said.
Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh police said they would allow private ambulances to proceed towards Hyderabad only if they have permission from Telangana authorities. It suggested to those wanting to go to Hyderabad for treatment to take letters from hospitals concerned in Hyderabad they are ready to provide beds and treat the patients.
Telangana officials have been saying that majority of the patients undergoing treatment in Covid hospitals in Hyderabad are from neighbouring states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.
The Telangana government had been requesting the Centre to hike the state's quota for oxygen and medicines keeping in view the large number of patients from other states undergoing treatment in Hyderabad.