Haryana Health Minister Arti Singh Rao has directed the state Health Department to exercise special caution in view of the current situation arising on the India-Pakistan border and the incidents of repeated ceasefire violations by Pakistan.

In this regard, as per the order of the health minister, the director general, Health Services Haryana has issued a strict order to all the civil surgeons and chief medical officers of the state.

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The order states that all types of leaves of all health officers and employees of the state – be it Earned Leave (EL), Child Care Leave (CCL), Extraordinary Leave (EOL) or any other type of leave – have been cancelled with immediate effect.

It has also been clearly directed that no officer or employee will leave the headquarters of his district nor go on leave.

The order also mentions that the officers/employees who are currently on leave will have to immediately report to their respective district headquarters and resume work. Departmental disciplinary action will be taken against those who violate the orders.

Arti Singh Rao said, “In view of the emergency situation arising on the border, it has become necessary that the Health Department works in full alert mode. The presence of all officers and employees is mandatory so that health services are not disrupted in any unforeseen situation. Service to the people of the state is paramount, and at this time, the department needs to work in unity.”

The state government has also given instructions to ensure the availability of necessary resources in all hospitals and primary health centres at the district level. Control rooms have been activated to monitor emergency medicines, blood storage, ambulance services and deployment of medical staff. The Health Department is fully prepared to deal with any situation.

The Health Minister has assured that the state government is keeping a close watch on the situation and additional measures will also be taken if needed. The general public has been appealed to avoid rumours and contact local health centres for any kind of healthcare related problem.

The minister said these instructions have been issued temporarily keeping in mind the security situation of the state and these can be changed according to the circumstances.

The priority of the department is to provide timely medical facilities to the people and any kind of negligence in this will not be tolerated, she said.