Coronavirus: Yogi Orders Action Against Those Who Sprayed Disinfectant On Migrant Workers In Bareilly

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered action against those who sprayed disinfectant on a group of migrant workers Bareilly in a bid to disinfect them amid the coronavirus outbreak. Condemning the incident, the chief minister has asked officials to ensure that such an incident does not repeat in the future, Awanish Awasthi, Additional Chief Secretary, told reporters on Tuesday.

Earlier on Monday, District Magistrate of Bareilly Nitish Kumar has promised action against the guilty persons. The DM also directed the chief medical officer (CMO) to provide medical treatment to people who were sprayed with sodium hypochlorite.

Senior officials of the state government went into action after videos showed migrants including women and children were sprayed with disinfecting chemical by a team on sanitising duty at the Bareilly bus stand.

According to media reports, the incident took place in Bareilly and many of them complained of burning sensation in their eyes after the incident.

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The district magistrate, in a tweet, said that the fire brigade and Nagar Nigam personnel became over-zealous in their sanitization drive and sprayed the chemical on the people.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra condemned the action in a tweet. "I appeal to the government in UP... all of us are fighting together against this crisis (coronavirus). Please don't indulge into such inhuman actions. The labourers have already suffered a lot. Don't spray chemicals on them. This won't protect them... rather it would harm their health," she wrote in Hindi, along with the clip.

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The apex child rights body National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has demanded disciplinary and penal action against officials responsible for forcefully sanitising a group of migrants.

The NCPCR has asked the Bareilly District Magistrate to submit a report in the matter within three days.