KATHMANDU: lsquo;Enough is Enough campaigner Iih ended his indefinite fast-unto-death on the 23rd day after government finally decided to address the campaigns demands, on Sunday.Iih, a youth activist, grabbed headlines and staged the strike demanding the government to effectively handle the coronavirus pandemic.The government has agreed to expand efforts to bring down the mortality rate by conducting RT-PCR (Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) test to detect the coronavirus and others antigen-based Covid-19 tests as infections surge across the country.
Making use of international investigations at local and national level to combat the virus is another concern thats been put forward.Demands have been made to provide the results of PCR reports quicklyto trace, treat and isolate the infected individuals.The government has also assured the protesters to scale up testing capacity to the maximum possible levels and keep a close eye on studies conducted by medical microbiology researchers on Covid-19.
In light of this current pandemic, it has been also requested to stock necessary emergency medicines along with sufficient market availability of essential drugs which may be required during these times.As contact tracing of patients continues to be a crucial tool to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, demands have been put forward to emphasize on the need for contact tracing at local levels/province and take appropriate action.It was asked of the state authorities to address the demands of people and various communities who are severely impacted by the pandemic and provide relief to those in need.Laslty, seeking immediate implementation of an agreement, demands were made to increase security measures to the medical fraternity who are working under heavy odds across the country.Earlier on July 7, Iih along with PukarBam, ended their hunger strike on the 12th day after the Ministry of Health and Population agreed to fulfill their major demands.
As the government failed to implement the agreement, the activists started the hunger strike for the second time.Iih, who had been leading the stir all along, also received extended support from many mainstream political parties in the country who expressed solidarity with the satyagrahis during their journey.The post Enough-is-Enough campaigner Iih calls off fast-unto-death appeared first on The Himalayan Times.