Team Herald
PANJIM: Former revenue minister Rohan Khaunte on Sunday slammed the government over increasing COVID-19 cases while alleging that unofficial figures could be more than the numbers reported on-record.
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“Faulty decisions of the State government have led to the increase of COVID-19 cases in State. Though officially the coronavirus cases has been reported as 17 (until early Saturday evening), the unofficial figures as informed to me by reliable source is 40 plus,” Khaunte alleged while addressing a press conference on the current situation in the State.
He accused the government for not disclosing the actual cases.
Khaunte also alleged that the arrival of Rajdhani Train on Saturday, brought those passengers who have investments or second home in Goa, clearly indicating that no Goan passengers alighted at Margao Railway Station.
“The special train which arrived at Margao on May 16 has offloaded approximately 700 passengers of whom not a single passenger is a Goan. Most of them looked to have investments or second home in the State,” he said adding that government should focus on to bring back Goans stranded abroad including several thousand seafarers.
“The government should initiate action immediately to bring them back to Goa and providing free quarantine service shouldn’t be an ego issue,” the Porvorim MLA said.
Khaunte also urged Minister for Railways Piyush Goyal to refrain trains from halting in State in the wake of rising COVID-19 cases.
In his letter to the Union Minister, Khaunte pointed out to increase in positive cases due to train passengers.
“Goa was declared as Green Zone on May 1, after all the seven cases which were detected to be positive, were cured. Subsequently from May 12 onwards, fresh cases have started surfacing. All the new infections have been detected in people coming from outside the State and this is a matter of serious concern,” the letter reads.
The legislator, while claiming that the Goans have duly adhered to lockdown norms by sacrificing their time, jobs and livelihood, said they feel betrayed and cheated and free and unrestricted movement is allowed in the State.
“The decision of Railway Ministry to halt trains at Madgaon Railway Station is a cause of concern. Looking at the reservation chart, it was imminent that almost majority of them were not of Goan origin and therefore had no reason to come to the State in times of such pandemic,” he said referring to the first train carrying 288 passengers arriving in the State.
Raising concern about people travelling from Red Zone, he further said that they would appreciate if repatriation trains are run exclusively for the Goans who want to come back home and have no other means of transport.
“I request you to cancel the stop of these trains in Goa till the situation normalises across the country,” the former minister added.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant on Sunday evening claimed that 90 per cent passengers are Goans having local documents.
