Come Sept 15, CM KCR set to go on medical college inauguration spree

Hyderabad: In a significant development and record of sorts, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao will be inaugurating nine government medical colleges in one go on September 15 with classes for the new academic year beginning on the same day.

This was disclosed by Health Minister T Harish Rao, who issued crucial directives to ensure successful commencement of classes at the new government medical colleges. These colleges are coming up in Kamareddy, Karimnagar, Khammam, Jayashankar-Bhupalpally, Komarambheem-Asifabad, Nirmal, Rajanna Siricilla, Vikarabad, and Janagaon. They are poised to provide world-class facilities to students in the upcoming academic year.

Chairing a review meeting on Thursday, Rao said this visionary initiative aims to provide high-quality medical education and healthcare services to the local population. He acknowledged that last year classes commenced in eight medical colleges and this year, nine additional colleges were poised to welcome students on September 15. He stressed the imperative of meticulous preparations to ensure a seamless start to the academic year.

The respective college principals have been entrusted with overseeing the admissions process. The minister directed the Kaloji University V-C and the Director of Medical Education to re-convene on Friday for further supervision, ensuring students encounter no disruptions during the classes.

Rao highlighted the remarkable expansion of government medical education in the State. Prior to State formation, there were merely five government medical colleges; three of which were before the formation of Andhra Pradesh. With the addition of the nine medical colleges, the government medical college tally will reach 26, offering a total of 3,915 medical seats. This marks a significant increase from the mere 850 MBBS seats available in 2014 through five government medical colleges.

In a substantial move, the minister announced expansion of Arogya Mahila Clinics. The expansion includes establishment of 100 additional centres dedicated to women’s healthcare. Another hundred women’s health clinics are slated to be launched on September 12. The State, which currently boasts of 272 such centres, is poised to have 372 in near future. The centres will exclusively employ female medical personnel, providing eight major medical services every Tuesday. Thus far, 278,317 have been screened, with 13,673 requiring medical attention. They were promptly referred to hospitals by the dedicated healthcare professionals.

The minister directed officials to release results of the recruitment of 5,204 staff nurses. He stressed on the need to address pending issues related to the Pay Revision Commission (PRC) and promptly resolve arrears of auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs). Additionally, he called for expeditious completion of the appointment process for District Medical and Health Officers sanctioned under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.