The Hindu : Government not victimising junior doctors: Kodela

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 09, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Government not victimising junior doctors: Kodela

By Our Staff Reporter

GUNTUR, FEB. 8. The Minister for Health, Kodela Sivaprasada Rao, denied allegations of the junior doctors that the State Government was victimising them.

The State Government was following the directive of the Andhra Pradesh High Court verbatim and advised the junior doctors not to issue any irresponsible statements as that could attract contempt of court proceedings against them, Dr. Rao said at a press conference on Sunday.

The first meeting of the special committee headed by Justice Jeevan Reddy, formed to go into the crisis, would be held on Wednesday, he observed.

On considering the strike period as duty hours, Dr. Rao said that the Government did not have any role in deciding on this and the university alone was authorised to take a decision. The junior doctors had been criticising the State Government for marking all junior doctors absent for three days and they should desist from making irresponsible statement, he added.

He reminded them of the critical note taken by the High Court about the strike, which had asked some of the junior doctors, who had resorted to misbehaviour during the strike period, to tender an unconditional apology.

Paddy procurement

The State Civil Supplies Department was prepared to procure paddy from all farmers to the last grain, he said and asked them not to resort to panic sales.

"The department officials would be sent to villages if a majority of them came together to sell on a fixed day,'' he observed.

Criticising the Congress leaders for politicising the paddy procurement process, he said that there were some technical problems at some places only in procurement, but the Government would purchase entire quantity at the rate fixed by the Government if the farmers failed to sell at remunerative prices.

The State Government was considering developing the Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) as a premier national medical institution on the lines of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) with an investment of Rs. 270 crores, Dr. Rao said. The proposed institution would be developed on a 20-acre plot by acquiring by additional land as the NIMS currently exists on a 6-acre sites in Hyderabad, he said at a press conference here on Sunday. "The Centre is prepared to invest Rs. 120 crores and the State Government will make an investment of Rs. 150 crores,'' he said.

An expert committee has been constituted to go into the preparation of the project details.

The Vandemataram scheme, a regular health programme for pregnant women and new mothers would be launched in the district on Monday at the IMA Hall in Guntur, he announced. The State Government would provide all support for the central scheme and ensure it continued on 9th of every month.

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