Haryana orders deployment of final-year MBBS students in COVID duty

CHANDIGARH: Amid rising number of COVID-19 cases, the Haryana government has said final-year MBBS students studying in government and private medical colleges will be deployed for effective management of the pandemic.

The death toll due to COVID-19 in Haryana on Sunday rose to 160 with 11 fresh fatalities, while the infection tally climbed to 10,635 as 412 more people tested positive for the disease, a health department bulletin said.

The director general of medical education and research in Haryana said in an order that 1,106 final-year MBBS students of 11 government and private medical colleges in the state have been assigned COVID duties and they shall report to civil surgeons of the districts concerned. There has been a surge in the number of COVID positive cases in Haryana.

The government is in the process of creating additional healthcare facilities to effectively manage the COVID-19 cases which required additional manpower, the order dated June 19 said. The government has decided that all final-year MBBS students of all government and private medical colleges in the state shall be deputed with the health department with immediate effect, it said. The directors of medical colleges and civil surgeons shall ensure that the students are provided all necessary training, it added.

According to the order, the students have been asked to report to the civil surgeons concerned by June 22. If needed, the civil surgeons shall also ensure boarding and lodging arrangements for the students, the order stated. Coronavirus cases in Haryana have risen sharply during the past three weeks, with Gurgaon and Faridabad accounting for majority of the cases as well as fatalities. Of 11 fresh fatalities on Sunday, Gurgaon and Faridabad, among Haryana's worst-hit districts, accounted for nine fresh fatalities.

The death toll in Gurgaon and Faridabad, which fall in the National Capital Region (NCR), has now climbed to 64 and 56, respectively. The state health department bulletin said with 11 more COVID-19 deaths the total number of fatalities in the state has risen to 160. Of the total fatalities in Haryana, 109 are males and 51 females. With 412 fresh infections, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Haryana rose to 10,635 on Sunday, the bulletin said. Gurgaon alone accounts for 4,427 cases in Haryana, while Faridabad has 2,237 cases.