Siddaramaiah inaugurates Government KSSHAM Maternity and Children’s Hospital
Pics by Prasanna Kodavoor
Udupi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the new building of the Government Koosamma Shambhu Shetty Haji Abdulla Memorial Maternity and Children’s Hospital here on Sunday, November 19.
The State government has signed a memorandum of understanding with a private entity, BRS Health and Research Institute Pvt. Ltd. (BRSHRI), owned by NRI businessman Dr B R Shetty.
Under the MoU, 3.88 acres of land of the District Maternity and Children’s Hospital has been given to BRSHRI to construct and run a 200 bed Government Koosamma Shambhu Shetty Haji Abdulla Memorial Hospital, a 400-bed super-speciality hospital, and a community service centre under the public-private participation mode.
As per the MoU BRSHRI has constructed the new charitable maternity and children’s hospital near the existing 70-bed District Government and Maternity Hospital.
In his speech, CM Siddaramaiah said that doubts have been raised about the district maternity and children’s hospital of being privatized. Today I make it clear to the people of Udupi that the District Maternity and Children’s Hospital is not being privatized. Dr B R Shetty has constructed the hospital and and will only be running the new maternity hospital, the hospital will be under the control of the committee under the Deputy Commissioner.
The intention is only to provide better health care facilities to the poor and not privatization. The poor would be treated free of cost at the maternity hospital. Those patients referred from the maternity hospital would be treated free of cost at the 400-bed super-specialty hospital, he added.
The Government Koosamma Shambhu Shetty Haji Abdulla Memorial Maternal and Children’s Hospital will be under the control of the government and there would be no scope for any sort of privatization. The 200-bedded hospital is for the poor and will remain for the poor. The state government is the voice of the poor; he said and added that the government is the epitome of secularism. It stands for the poor, Dalits, OBCs, farmers, women and all other weaker sections.
Today we are celebrating the 100th Birth anniversary of Late Prime minister Indira Gandhi. Eradicating poverty and filling hungry stomachs was also a dream of Indira Gandhi. Today the BJP is day-dreaming about a Congress-free Karnataka and our government is working for a hunger-free, poverty-free, malnutrition-free Karnataka. Only those who have suffered hunger will understand the value of food. Invoking Indira Gandhi’s call of Garibi Hatao, the state government has already started 200 Indira canteens in Bengaluru. The canteen was a promise that no one would go hungry in Bengaluru. The state government has decided to set up Indira Canteens in all the taluk and district headquarters and supply subsidized food from January 1, 2018, he added.
Announcing Udupi district as open defecation free district CM Siddaramaiah said that Karnataka will be free of open defecation by 2018. We have worked on several initiatives to make our state free from open defecation. Women elected representatives should also help in achieving this and ensure to work towards its success, he said.
Health Minister Ramesh Kumar, Bengaluru minister incharge K J George, Food and Civil Supplies Minister U T Khader, District Minister In-charge Pramod Madhwaraj, MLA’s Vinay Kumar Sorake, Ivan D’Souza, Govindraj, Udupi CMC President Meenakshi Madhava Bannanje, Dr B R Shetty, Dr. C R Shetty, BS Shetty, DC Priyanka Mary Francis and others were present.
Confirmation that Udupi is an Open Defecation Free district is a tall claim. Simply stand at the small Police Station cubicle opp. the Service Bus Stand from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm and his claim will prove wrong. Check out the number of Rickshaw drivers, Bus Conductors/Drivers, Roadside vendors urinating on the Government Junior College wall!