Covid-19: Civil society organisations, NGOs raise issue of neglect of marginalised sections

NEW DELHI: Civil society organisations and NGOs working for rights of marginalised sections on Tuesday raised before the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) the inadequate reach of medical care and vaccination drive among nomadic tribes and unorganised sector workers at a time when the country is dealing with the second Covid wave.
At an online meeting organised by NHRC with around 100 representatives of NGO, civil society organisations and human rights defending groups here, it was suggested that the allocation towards public health should be enhanced to ensure health facilities including hospital beds and oxygen as well as vaccination coverage for all, including nomadic tribes as well as unorganised sector workers.
“It was also very emphatically suggested that it is high time that the allocation towards public health needs to be enhanced so that the country is adequately prepared to meet any public health emergencies & challenges in future. All the valuable suggestions shall be placed before the Commission on priority & thereafter duly approved recommendations will be forwarded to the Central and the state governments for necessary follow up action,” NHRC said in press release issued after the meeting.
Chairing the meeting, NHRC secretary Bimbadhar Pradhan lauded the role of the civil society organizations in the current challenging times and appealed that each one extend a helping hand to the other to create an effective collective response system. This, he said, shall complement and supplement the efforts of various government agencies on the ground. He said that the Commission, like ever before, is committed to play the role of a bridge between the institutions of governance and expectations of the citizens.
The online seminar was organized by NHRC to have an assessment of the ground realities and challenges of Covid-19 pandemic as well as containment measures, to enable the Commission to “suggest requisite initiatives/steps to mitigate the sufferings of the citizens of the country,” said NHRC.
More than hundred participants, representing various national and international organizations, senior state government functionaries and NHRC officers attended the said virtual meeting.