Jayalalithaa announces 9-month maternity leave for government employees

Chennai: There is good news for women working for the state government. Chief Minister J. Jayalalihtaa on Thursday announced nine months maternity leave for women, besides various schemes to boost the health infrastructure with state-of-the-art facilities in government hospitals.

The CM recalled that 9-month maternity leave for women in state government jobs was a promise made by the AIADMK during the election and said the maternity leave of 6 months would be extended to 9 months for protecting the infants. 

Making a statement under rule 110 in the Assembly, she said her government increased the maternity leave from 3 months to 6 months in 2011.

The Chennai Kilpauk, Madurai and Coimbatore government hospitals would get operation theatres with state-of-the-art facilities for vascular, cardio thoracic, ENT departments, besides plastic surgery theatres, she said. Hybrid OT, IVR rooms, post surgery care section, anaesthesia and intensive care departments would be set up at the hospitals at an estimated cost of Rs 356 crores. C-arm, X-ray, endoscopy, MRI scan and CT scan and other facilities would be given at an expenditure of Rs 497 crores, she added.

The government had allocated Rs. 75 crores for improving treatment facilities at the government medical college hospitals at Salem, Vellore, Thanjavur, Tirunelveli, Tiruchy and Tuticorin.

The facilities to come up at the hospitals include CT scan, mammography, operating microscope, ultra sound, C-arm and X-rays. Similarly, equipment for CT scan, digital fluoroscopy, endoscopy and haemodialysis would be given to district hospitals at Erode, Tiruppur, Cuddalore, Dindigul, Pudukottai, Krishnagiri and Periyakulam.

The hospitals at Avadi, Maniyanur (Salem), Velampalayam (Tiruppur) and Kandigaiperi (Tirunelveli) would also get new buildings inpatient wards, surgery, maternity. ENT, eyecare and children's sections, besides new equipment at a total cost of Rs. 131 crores.

The other district hospitals would also be provided state-of-the-art facilities at an estimated amount of Rs. 122 crores. Cathlab equipment would be given for government hospitals at Coimbatore, Vellore, Tirunelveli, Thanjavur and Chennai.

Special treatment facilities would be provided at Egmore children's hospital and infant sections at Chengalpattu, Coimbatore and Vellore, besides the setting up of 40 blood banks.

Other announcements included integrated primary healthcare service in three districts, dialysis equipment for 51 government hospitals, 50 new ambulances for 108 scheme, mobile medical teams for remote and hilly areas, separate sections for senior citizens at Villupuram, Vellore and Thanjavur hospitals and de-addiction centres at Kanchipuram, Tiruppur and Cuddalore districts.