The Karnataka government is all set to open telemedicine units in all government hospitals in the state at a cost of Rs.120 crore which will be implemented during the current financial year ending March 2004.

The project is equally funded by the Karnataka government, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Narayana Hrudayalaya.

A scheme has been formulated to ensure that the money collected at different district and taluk hospitals by way of consultation and other fees would be retained by the respective hospitals for their development. The deputy commissioners and chief executive officers of the panchyats have been instructed to convene a meeting and form committees to provide facilities and monitor these units, Kagodu Thimmappa, minister for health and family welfare, told Pharmabiz.com

Another initiative is by the Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra (VGKK), a non-governmental organization and Narayana Hrudayalaya hospital which has decided to offer telemedicine facility to the tribal zones and villages located in the hostile terrain of southern Karnataka which lack proper road links, in the first week of February 2004.

The region MM Hills is the location of the sandalwood brigand Veerappan who has been elusive to the Special Task Force (STF). The telemedicine link and the mobile medical unit will benefit the STF personnel hunting for Veerappan round the year in hostile terrain as there have been instances when the STF have succumbed to cardiac arrests or other diseases due to lack of proper medical facilities at STF camps spread over the forests of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu who need to go to Kollegal, 83 km from MM Hills, or Salem and Satyamangalam in Tamil Nadu for treatment.

Three full-time doctors will be deputed at the MM Hills within 150 km radius. An intensive care unit complete with ECG and other facilities will follow soon. The VGKK has appointed paramedical staff to take care of patients round the clock and have also got telephone services installed at a cost of Rs.18 lakh for access to Narayana Hrudayalaya.

The telemedicine facilities at the MM Hills primary health centre will cover more than 83 tribal zones and villages including Gopinatham which is Veerappan's native village, Gorasane, Medasane, Poonachi and Palar located deep in the forest.

According to reliable sources the setting up of the telemedicine facility will help the Special Task Force involved in combing operations to nab forest brigand Veerappan to get immediate medical attention on the one hand and also regain confidence of villagers and tribals living in the forest area in the hope that they will also help STF to provide clues to locate Veerappan.

Dr H Sudarshan, founder-chairman VGKK, said that the objective is to provide hi-tech medical services to remote villages in Veerappan's land.

The VGKK has also wrote to MM Hills Dharmadashi Committee to provide housing facilities to doctors and other paramedics working with the objective to serve the local people. Plans are underway to also extend telemedicine facilities to Chamarajnagar in Karnataka and Dimbhum in Tamil Nadu.