Hyderabad: Fund crunch hits Basthi Dawakhanas

Hyderabad: The proposal for Basthi Dawakhanas on the lines of Mohalla clinics in Delhi got stuck owing to lack of funds.

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), after learning about public response from the people for Mohalla clinics at Delhi, decided to set up Basthi Dawakhanas in its limits to provide medical help to the poor. It was estimated that the GHMC area would need 200 Basthi Dawakhanas.

The earlier proposal was to start 50 Dawakhanas in the city.  In Delhi, Mohalla clinics collected nominal fees from patients. But the GHMC proposed to provide medical facility free of cost. It was estimated that maintenance of each Dawakhana would need Rs 1.5 lakh per month. GHMC had sought government assistance to run these Dawakhanas.

Recently, municipal administration officials held a meeting with GHMC officials and discussed the issue of who would control the Dawakhanas. According to sources, officials said the state government would have to provide special funds for this. It proposed setting up a City Health Society with the GHMC and municipal administration officials to run the Dawakhanas. GHMC and the state Government would have to provide funds to the society.

GHMC proposed setting up these Dawakhanas in slum areas where the population was more than 5,000.  According to the initial proposal, GHMC would indentify private doctors who would be given Rs 1.5 lakh per month. The doctors would have to provide infrastructure to run the Dawakhanas.