Giving top priority to healthcare sector, Telangana State (TS) government has prepared a comprehensive proposal seeking Rs.3420 crore as special package from the central government for expanding healthcare facilities in the rural areas.
Giving final touches to the proposal, the medical and health department of Telangana state has asked for Rs.3450 crore as special package from the central government for expanding the primary healthcare centres in the districts of Adilabad, Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar, Medak, Khammam and Warangal districts in the state.
According to the sources in the healthcare department, the state government is planning to expand the 238 existing PHCs in the districts to 30 bedded hospitals. For which the state government has asked for Rs.1071 crore in its proposal. “We require about Rs.4.5 crore for each PHC to upgrade it to 30 bedded hospital. In addition to it we have also put various proposals like up gradation of regional hospitals, establishing medical colleges and super speciality hospitals etc. Over the entire healthcare sector needs more than Rs.3400 crore for improving healthcare facilities in the state,” said a senior officer in the healthcare department.
The medical and healthcare department has identified 42 regional hospitals under the Vidya Vidhana Parishad and has proposed to seek Rs.539 crore to upgrade these regional hospitals.
Moreover the TS government is also planning to establish medical colleges and super speciality hospitals in 4 districts of Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar, Medak and Khammam at a cost of Rs.1650 crore. To this effect the state government has asked the central government to allocate special package for the state as part of its promises in the Andhra Pradesh reorganisation bill 2013.
In its proposal to the central government, the TS medical and health department has also proposed to allocate Rs.160 crore to the newly established Kaloji Health Knowledge University at Warangal.
Overall, the TS government has been working to re-structure and re-organise the entire healthcare sector in the state and has been drafting concrete proposals from time to time to not only upgrade the medical infrastructure but also enhance the quality of medical services and improve the medical education in the state.
“Our focus is to improve the healthcare infrastructure and provide quality healthcare services to the rural poor. At the same time we are also working towards improving the medical education by seeking more seats in the government colleges in the next academic year”, said Deputy Chief Minister and Medical & Health Minister, Dr T Rajaiah.