HYDERABAD: In a bid to give a much-needed break to the fatigued medical and health staff in the state, Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday directed officials to make use of the services of 50,000 odd MBBS graduates for a brief period of two to three months.
The Chief Minister also directed the finance department to immediately release the pending Rs 28 crore because of which the two super speciality hospitals, one each in Warangal and Adilabad, remained incomplete for more than a year now.
Of the Rs 300 crore allocated for both the hospitals, the Centre gave a grant of Rs 240 crore but the state government could not provide its matching grant till now.
The equipment was lying idle and though IT minister K .T. Rama Rao announced the issue of orders releasing Rs 30 crore to Adilabad RIMS some time back, the finance department is yet to arrange the funds.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to take immediate measures to appoint 729 staff in both the hospitals put together.
Chandrashekar Rao held a review on Covid-19 containment operations at Pragati Bhavan with Ministers T. Harish Rao and E. Dayakar Rao along with Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar and other senior state officials.
Significantly, the officials informed the Chief Minister of the availability of adequate oxygen and remdesivir injections in the state. They said 7,393 beds are available in government hospitals, including 2,470 beds fitted with oxygen supply and 600 with ventilators. Health staff is available round the clock with required medicines, they said. However, Rao said that remdesivir injections should be made available in private hospitals also.
The Chief Minister asked the officials to invite applications from the 50,000-odd medical students who have completed MBBS and are qualified. Nurses, lab technicians, pharmacists and other paramedical staff should also be immediately engaged and paid respectable salary, he said.
Rao also announced that the temporary staff who came forward to serve should be given weightage marks when they apply for government jobs. He urged young doctors to come forward to serve the people, who are facing a difficult situation.
Those interested can apply online by logging into https://odls.telenagna.gov.in/medicalrecruitment/home.aspx, he said
The Chief Minister also decided that five kgs of rice per person for two months would be distributed free to all white ration card holders in the state and the number of private teachers being extended state help of '2,000 per month and 25 kgs of rice would be enhanced from 1.2 lakh to two lakh.
