Sitaram Yechury says stand vindicated

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said his decision to skip the visit to Kerala on the first day after the Puttingal temple fire tragedy which left 113 people dead and over 380 injured, stood vindicated in view of the serious concern expressed by the state police chief and and director health services over VVIP visits.

“I was in Chennai on Sunday. I got frantic calls from my comrades to rush to Kerala. But I took a conscious decision not to visit the mishap site or hospitals on the first day. The first 24 hours after the tragedy is crucial as the entire focus should be on relief and rescue operations. So I went back to to Delhi and came to Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram only on Monday,” recollected Yechury.

The CPM general secretary said on reaching the Trivandrum Medical College, the authorities came with sterile clothes, gowns and caps for us to visit the patients in the burns unit and ICU. “Some of my comrades even put on the caps and gowns, ready to enter the ICU. But I refused to enter the ICU where extremely critical patient were being treated. Others also didn't enter the area. From the window I could see doctors’ trying hard to resuscitate a patient,” Yechury told DC.

Later doctors came out and explained the medical efforts being undertaken to save the lives of patients. “Each moment is crucial during the first 24 hours.  There is no need for a drama on such occasions. The primary concern should be about saving lives. You can visit once things settle down, rescue and relief operations get over,” Yechury said.

The CPM general secretary said in times of such tragedy the VVIPs should take a conscious decision to avoid theri visit to the tragedy site and hospitals. Since the intial hours after theincident are also crucial for investigations, the crowding of the site also hampers the work of agencies.