About 2,000 doctors will be recruited shortly by the Medical and Health Department for filling vacant posts in hospitals and health centres in the rural areas.
With rural service made mandatory for the medical graduates and post-graduates, each mandal health centre would have at least six to seven doctors in two months, said Medical Education Minister Kondru Murali in the Legislative Council here on Friday.
Replying to Dr. Geyanand (PDF) who raised the issue of poor medical facilities and lack of doctors in the rural health centres, Mr. Murali said that specialist doctors would also be posted in the rural areas under the mandatory rural service.
Congress members A. Lakshmi Shivakumari and B.Indira said schemes like Janani Suraksha Yojana, Janani Shishu Suraksha to bring down maternal and infant mortality rate were not accessible to women in interior villages and habitations. K. Dileep Kumar (Graduate) expressing concern over sub-standard private medical colleges sought to know action taken against private medical colleges which flouted stipulated norms. Some of these private medical colleges were like ‘Drama companies’ which functioned with hired staff, students, faculty, doctors and patients.
The Medical Education Minister however refuted the charges and said under the prescribed norms, only a State government, university, a registered society or charitable trust could set up the medical college with prior permission from the Centre.
