All private hospitals should reserve at least 60 per cent of their sanctioned beds for Covid-19 patients, the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission said on Saturday.

Several private hospitals have already increased their Covid bed count in the past few weeks but that has not been sufficient.

“All the clinical establishments in the private healthcare sector would be segregating 40 per cent of the total sanctioned beds, including day care beds, emergency triage, for emergency non-Corona treatment like dialysis and emergency surgeries. The rest, being 60 per cent of the sanctioned beds/set up, would be dedicated for Covid treatment,” the commission said in an advisory to private hospitals. “It is apprehended that many precious lives may be lost if Covid beds are not enhanced to accommodate the increasing number of patients.”

Apollo Gleneagles Hospital had 130 Covid beds on Saturday out of the total 700 sanctioned beds in the hospitals. Forty of the Covid beds were critical care beds. An official of the hospital said it would increase the number of Covid beds to 425 within a short time.

Peerless Hospital had 90 Covid beds on Saturday of its sanctioned 400 beds. “We will reserve 240 beds in hospital for Covid very soon. Last year, we had 150 Covid beds at the peak of the pandemic,” said an official of the hospital.

Belle Vue Clinic had 174 Covid beds on Saturday out of their sanctioned 241 beds in the hospital. Thirty-seven of the Covid beds are critical care beds. An official said they would add 23 more Covid beds.

Medica Superspeciality Hospital has 340 sanctioned beds and 224 of these have been converted into Covid beds already. The hospital has 135 critical care beds for Covid patients. Medica will add 20 more Covid beds. Besides it has proposed to the state government to build a 200-bed unit at the Kishore Bharati stadium in Santoshpur.

In its advisory, the commission stated that hospitals that have already reserved more than 60 per cent of their sanctioned beds for Covid patients should not reduce the number.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday asked officials of both private and state government hospitals to increase the number of Covid beds. She asked them to open more satellite units where patients with mild symptoms could be admitted.

Senior officials of the state government had earlier requested officials of private hospitals to shift their vaccination centres and OPDs out of the hospital and use the space for adding more Covid beds.