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Doctor spotlights his Left links, pushes for infra projects
The Hindu
Chief Minister hails LDF candidate’s ‘social commitment and love for humanity’
Jo Joseph, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) candidate for the Thrikkakara byelection, felt his long association with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] might have paved way for his candidature.
Though he was not associated with the SFI or the DYFI during his student and youth days, Dr. Joseph, interventional cardiologist at a private hospital in the city, said he had of late become a member of the CPI(M). “I had always identified myself with Left politics. It’s the LDF that has come up with pro-people measures,” said Dr. Joseph in his media interaction after the announcement of his candidature.
Dr. Joseph said he had been associating with the CPI(M) during the COVID-19 relief operations. He said he had campaigned for the LDF candidate during the last Assembly polls in the constituency and addressed a few meetings. The cardiac surgeon denied statements that he was a candidate nominated by the Church.
While the State has achieved high standards in the public health care and other social indices, much needs to be done in terms of infrastructure development. The K-Rail project was one infrastructure project that was required for the State, he said.
According to him, the cardiac heathcare facilities available in the State for the common man were comparable to most advanced countries. Nearly 90% of those who suffer a heart attack get effective and affordable or even free heart care within one hour in the State, he said.
In his social media post, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan noted that Dr. Joseph could uphold the LDF’s social commitment and love for humanity. The medical expert, said the post, has made his mark as a social worker, writer and orator. Dr. Joseph, the executive trustee of the NGO, Heart Care Foundation, had made his presence felt in the social sector by participating in the relief operations during recent floods and the COVID outbreak, he said.
The visuals of the Dr. Joseph rushing with a live heart that was harvested for a heart replant was still afresh in the minds of Keralites, he noted. The Chief Minister also hoped that the LDF candidate would become the mascot of the development and welfare activities of the front.
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Prarthana Prasad is a social media influencer, entrepreneur and a leading voice from the LGBTQ+ community. At a recent Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Conclave held in Bengaluru she opened up about how she is often a “token ticket” for the corporate world, increasingly contacted by brands for promotion during Pride Month.