Congress demands cure for hospital ills

Congress women leaders visit maternity hospital; slam government for the ‘horrible’ conditions; seek Health Minister’s resignation

​Hyderabad: Alleging that the State government was not responding to women’s deaths in maternity hospitals, Congress women leaders alleged that infrastructure in government hospitals were in hopeless condition.

“There are no similarities between the government’s statements about hospitals and the existing realities,” they said and dared the Health Minister to do ‘labour work’ in the Petla Burj Hospital if he was sincere. If he so did, then the Minister would know the problems of patients there, they added.

Congress women leaders D K Aruna, Sabitha Indra Reddy, Sunitha Laxma Reddy, Padmavathi, Akula Lalitha, Banda Karthika Reddy, Nerella Sharada and others visited Petla Burj Hospital located in the old city on Tuesday.

They inquired the hospital superintendent about women’s deaths and the facilities in the hospital. The leaders also enquired the relatives of patients about the conditions prevailed in the hospital.

Speaking to the media later, former Minister and Gadwal MLA D K Aruna alleged that the non-appointment of hospital staff itself showed the negligent attitude of the State government.

“There is no blood bank in the Petla Burj Hospital. It is shocking that only six doctors are attending to 600 patients,” she wondered and asked the government to tell why it was not recruiting doctors. “The government has to concentrate on hospitals and stop mere talking.

It is shameful on the part of the government that the hospital is sending patients to private hospitals,” she said. Demanding that the State government set up blood bank on the hospital premises immediately, Aruna said Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had to feel shy while seeing the corrupt practices prevailed in the hospital.

Former Home Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy asked Health Minister C Laxma Reddy, who had ample time for party plenary and public meeting, to tell whether he did not have time to visit the hospitals. The Chief Minister and Ministers were not in a position to see the postpartum deaths in the hospital situated in the centre of the city.

“People do not need golden Telangana but they need lively Telangana,” she said.The Health Minister was not in a position to see the corruption in hospitals and the staff harassing the patients for money.

“It is shameful on the part of the government for stating that the State is corruption free,” she said and pointed out that the problems in the maternity hospitals would have come out if there was a woman in the State cabinet.

The Ministers would know if they visited hospitals instead of roaming elsewhere in State cars. Demanding that the State government suspend the superintendent of the Koti Government Hospital immediately, Sharada warned that the Congress would wage a battle in case the government had failed to initiate action against the superintendent. She also demanded that the Health Minister tender resignation owning the responsibility of the hospital deaths.