Def minister meets Shripad, lauds GMC doctors for prompt action

Panaji: Union defence minister Rajnath Singh visited Ayush minister Shripad Naik at Goa Medical College (GMC) and hospital, Bambolim on Tuesday to inquire about his condition.

“The doctors here have told me his condition is stable and there is no danger to his life,” Singh told reporters after meeting GMC doctors for around 20 minutes. “But I have spoken to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) director Dr Randeep Guleria and an AIIMS team will come to check on him.”

Singh said that the AIIMS team would consult GMC doctors and take whatever decisions are necessary. This will be the second time an AIIMS team will visit Goa to check on Naik. In August last year, a team was rushed to the state as he battled Covid-19.

“If proper treatment is possible here, he will be treated here itself, but if a need is felt, he will be taken to Delhi, but everything will depend on the doctors here,” Singh said.

Four surgeries were performed on Naik last night after he was rushed to GMC from Karnataka, where he met with an accident. He suffered multiple fractures, while his wife Vijaya and assistant Dr Deepak Ghume died in the fatal accident.

After the news of Naik’s accident, Singh said he spoke to Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant. Prime Minister Narendra Modi too expressed concern.

“The PM asked me to go to Goa and I also felt the same, and so I’m here,” Singh said.

The Union minister congratulated GMC doctors for the role they played in treating Naik. “I appreciate the prompt action taken by the doctors of this medical college,” he said. “I pray for his speedy recovery and that he comes back to work with us at the earliest.”

Earlier, Singh met Siddhesh, Naik’s elder son.