New Delhi: Swine flu is at the centre of a bitter battle between the Central government and the states. States have reacted angrily after Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad lashed out at them for not doing enough to combat swine flu saying the Centre was stretching itself to the maximum to contain the disease.
Lashing out at state governments, Azad said they have "forgotten their duty" even though the Centre was stretching itself to the maximum limit to contain the disease.
Addressing state health ministers at a review meeting of the National Rural Health Mission in New Delhi, the Minister said, "We (Centre) can go to a point, don't expect us to go beyond a point.
"This is the maximum limit we could stretch ourselves to. Beyond this the state governments should shoulder their responsibility which they haven't done," Azad said.
The total number of those afflicted by the disease has reached 2,401, a Health Ministry official said in Delhi.
(With PTI inputs)