YSRCP's Gopireddy Srinivasa Reddy criticises the Andhra Pradesh government for prioritising capital building projects over completing essential government medical colleges, alleging funds are being diverted to benefit private operators.
YSRCP Questions Naidu Government Expenditure Priorities
YSRCP Doctors Wing Working President and former MLA Gopireddy Srinivasa Reddy on Wednesday questioned Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's decision to spend Rs 4,500 crore on glass structures for capital buildings while leaving government medical colleges incomplete. Addressing the media at the YSRCP central office in Tadepalli, Gopireddy alleged that public healthcare had been sacrificed for extravagant projects and private interests.
Status of Government Medical Colleges
He said former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had initiated 17 government medical colleges, allocating approximately 50 acres of land and Rs 500 crore for each institution. The initiative was aimed at creating 2,000 additional MBBS seats, along with nursing, dental, physiotherapy and other healthcare facilities. Five colleges began functioning during the YSRCP government, while three more became operational subsequently, he said.
Privatisation and Viability Gap Funding Concerns
Instead of completing the remaining nine colleges, the coalition government was handing them over to private operators on 66-year leases, he alleged. Questioning the provision of Rs 1,630 crore in Viability Gap Funding (VGF) to private players, Gopireddy said the government had already provided land and invested thousands of crores of rupees in construction. He argued that the same funds could be used to provide nearly Rs 200 crore to each of the remaining nine colleges and complete them.
He further said the government would bear the salaries of teaching and non-teaching staff for the first two years, while private operators would benefit from management quota fees and hospital revenues. Gopireddy described the VGF arrangement as a scheme designed to secure kickbacks for Lokesh and his associates. He also said that reducing extravagant expenditure on chartered flights and helicopters could help fund the completion of the medical colleges.
Public Utility and Future Outlook
Highlighting the public utility of the institutions, he said Piduguralla Medical College receives 700-800 outpatients daily, while other colleges cater to 1,000-1,500 outpatients and 300-400 inpatients. He said the YSRCP would reverse the privatisation decisions upon returning to power and restore government control over these public assets.
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