Bhopal, Sep 30 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Rajendra Shukla on Wednesday hit back at the Congress ahead of the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s proposed visit to Balaghat, accusing him of trying to gain political mileage from the deaths of tribal children.
“Rahul Gandhi is coming after so many days. This is only an attempt to gain political mileage and polish his politics,” Deputy CM Shukla said, while defending the state government’s response to the health situation in the tribal-dominated district.
Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit Balaghat on Thursday to meet the families of tribal children who died in villages in the Baihar-Birsa area amid concerns over malnutrition, infectious diseases and inadequate access to healthcare.
The issue had triggered a political confrontation in the state after Rahul Gandhi, in a social media post on September 17, claimed that more than 30 tribal children had died and raised questions over healthcare, nutrition, clean drinking water and disease control in the region.
The Congress subsequently demanded Deputy CM Shukla’s resignation over the deaths.
State Congress leaders also organised a “Nyay Yatra” in Balaghat, met affected families and sought accountability from the state government.
The reported deaths, involving children from Baiga and Gond tribal communities, have been linked to multiple health conditions rather than a single cause, according to health assessments.
These included measles, malaria, respiratory distress, dehydration, malnutrition, anaemia and shock.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court has also sought a response and documents from the state government in connection with a public interest litigation concerning the deaths.
Deputy Chief Minister Shukla said the state government had taken steps to strengthen healthcare delivery in remote areas and was focusing on providing treatment at the primary level.
“Our focus is to ensure that people get treatment at the primary level itself and only serious cases are referred to district hospitals or medical college hospitals,” he added.
The state government has posted 67 new medical officers in Balaghat and approved Rs 2 crore for strengthening health facilities.
Directions have also been issued for setting up two new primary health centres, a sub-health centre and two mobile medical units.
Deputy CM Shukla said that more than 3,100 doctors had been posted to strengthen primary health centres in remote areas and over 2,600 of them had joined duty.
He also said efforts were being made to strengthen the Anganwadi system to address malnutrition and improve healthcare access in remote tribal areas.
Rahul Gandhi is expected to visit affected villages in the Baihar-Birsa area on Thursday and meet the families of the deceased children.
–IANS
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