A photograph of a young IAS officer with his foot resting on a steel railing of the hospital bed while interacting with patients and bystanders has gone viral on social media platforms.
Jagdish Sonkar, a 2013-batch IAS officer from Uttarakhand who also has an MBBS degree, was on a routine visit to the government hospital’s Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre. The gesture which may be termed disrespectful may have subjected the patients to the risk of infection.
In the photograph, he is seen interacting with the mothers of malnourished children with his left foot casually placed on the bed’s railing.
The saga began after somebody at the hospital shot and shared the photograph on social media.
After the backlash, Ramanujganj’s subdivisional magistrate (SDM) told the paper that his “action was unintentional and avoidable”.
Sonkar faced severe criticism on twitter.
Dear Jagdish Sonkar, IAS 2013 batch, SDM somewhere in Chattisgarh : Be respectful. And don’t repeat this again. pic.twitter.com/3d11qVQiiB
However, there were also people who highlighted his good work beyond call of duty. They believe that the official cannot be judged based on the ‘foot on the bed’ gesture.
And this is Jagdish Sonkar . Who was treating patients for 2 n a half hrs in d same hospital,working overtime pic.twitter.com/L5oMV28ZFu
But the official’s callousness has not gone well with the chief minister Raman Singh who told the media that he has instructed the General Administration Department (GAD) to “train new officers in social behaviour and public dealing before sending them to field posting”.
