Union minister Shripad Naik is conscious, recovering: Goa CM

Union minister Shripad Naik, whois admitted in a Goa hospital after he met with an accident,is conscious and recovering, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant onWednesday said, adding that there is no need to shift him toNew Delhi for further treatment.Sawant told reporters that a team from the Delhi-basedAIIMS, led by Dr S Rajeshwari, in the morning reviewed thetreatment being given to Naik at the Goa Medical College andHospital GMCH near here.The AIIMS team is happy with the line of treatment.Naik is recovering.

Union minister Shripad Naik, whois admitted in a Goa hospital after he met with an accident,is conscious and recovering, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant onWednesday said, adding that there is no need to shift him toNew Delhi for further treatment.

Sawant told reporters that a team from the Delhi-basedAIIMS, led by Dr S Rajeshwari, in the morning reviewed thetreatment being given to Naik at the Goa Medical College andHospital (GMCH) near here.

''The AIIMS team is happy with the line of treatment.

Naik is recovering. There is no need to shift him to Delhi,''the chief minister said.

He also said that Naik, the Union Minister of Statefor Defence and AYUSH, is conscious and speaking.

''He spoke to me in the morning. We are giving him thebest treatment at the GMCH,'' Sawant said.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who visited the GMCHon Tuesday, had said that if required, Naik will be shifted toNew Delhi for further treatment.

The team from the All India Institute of MedicalSciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, has advised to take Naik off theventilator on Wednesday, an official from the team said.

Taking to reporters late Tuesday night, the officialalso said they are satisfied with Naik's breathing, bloodpressure and other health parameters.

The AIIMS team arrived in Goa on Tuesday evening andvisited Naik at the government-run GMCH located in Porvorim.

They later held discussions with doctors of the GMCHover the line of treatment for Naik, a senior official fromthe Goa-based hospital said.

Chief Minister Sawant was also present along with theteam at the GMCH.

Talking to reporters late Tuesday night at the GMCH,one of the members from the AIIMS team said, ''We are satisfiedwith his breathing, blood pressure and other healthparameters. We have seen him and given advice to take him offthe ventilator tomorrow (Wednesday).'' Naik received injuries, while his wife Vijaya and anaide died on Monday when their car met with the accident nearAnkola in Uttar Kannada district, while he was returning tohome state Goa from Dharmasthala in neighbouring Karnataka.

Naik was admitted to the GMCH late Monday night.

GMCH Dean Dr Shivanand Bandekar on Tuesday said whenNaik was brought to the GMCH, he was critical but later heresponded to treatment and is gaining consciousness.

Four major surgeries were performed on him, he said.

Bandekar said Naik will continue to be in the hospitalfor another 10 to 15 days after which it will take at leastthree to four months for him to recuperate completely.