The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : More funds for urban areas: Rosaiah

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Monday, Dec 24, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

More funds for urban areas: Rosaiah

Staff Reporter

Shopping complex inaugurated at Peddapuram in East Godavari district

Powers given to civic bodies to raise funds
Focus on infrastructure sector

Kakinada: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has set up a corpus of Rs. 1 lakh crore for development of urban areas in the country.

In addition to its share of the fund, Andhra Pradesh will spend large sums from the Finance Commission and Central grants to bring about all-round development of the urban areas, according to Finance Minister K. Rosaiah.

Speaking after inaugurating a shopping complex built under the Integrated Scheme for Development of Small and Medium Towns at Peddapuram on Saturday night, Mr. Rosaiah said the State Government delegated the powers to raise funds to the municipalities and took other measures for strengthening local bodies whose development was crucial for the State to achieve better standards of living.

Mr. Rosaiah said the Government gave priority to irrigation for which it earmarked Rs. 13,000 crores in 2007-08 and it would spend more to create new ayacut and thereby benefit farmers. Massive foreign investments were being attracted to the State with emphasis on the infrastructure sector, the Minister added.

Zilla Parishad Chairman Ch. Venugopala Krishna complimented the Finance Minister for making the State financially strong and exuded confidence that the State would achieve phenomenal progress in the years ahead.

Collector M. Subrahmanyam, District Revenue Officer Mohan Raj, Peddapuram municipal Chairperson M. Syamalamba and others were present.

Consumers’ plea

The Kakinada Consumers’ Council (KCC) has termed the ordinance issued by the State Government for the protection of doctors, as a cosmetic treatment of the actual malaise that lay elsewhere.

In a press release, KCC president D. Lakshmana Rao and secretary P.S.R.K. Timmaji Rao stated that the real problem was the Government’s inability to render proper medical services in Government hospitals. People generally shun Government hospitals despite spending of huge sums on equipment and other infrastructure. The reason, according to the KCC is “barring honourable exceptions, many doctors make lucrative earnings through private practice and associating themselves with corporate hospitals. There is no recruitment in hospitals and some of the posts are filled by giving petty remuneration on ad hoc basis through outsourcing agencies. The senior doctors after superannuation are making their way into corporate hospitals.”

This being the scenario, the State Government should pay more attention to Government hospitals to make them more efficient.

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