Hyderabad: Health Minister C. Damodar Rajanarasimha on Wednesday urged BRS working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) to stop conspiring against government hospitals. He specifically warned KTR not to harm institutions like Gandhi Hospital, which serve a large number of poor patients.
Rajanarasimha was responding to KTR’s recent comments about deaths in Gandhi Hospital. He expressed disappointment that KTR’s statements hurt the reputation of the hospital and could lower the confidence of the poor who rely on it for treatment.
The minister pointed out that government hospitals in the state had been neglected during the previous administration, allowing corporate hospitals to thrive. He criticized the BRS party, accusing them of weakening government hospitals like Gandhi and Osmania for the past ten years, and now continuing similar harmful tactics even while in opposition.
Rajanarasimha explained that tertiary care hospitals, such as Gandhi, generally handle the most critically ill patients. He emphasized that doctors do everything they can to save lives, but some patients, unfortunately, pass away due to the severity of their conditions. He stated that deaths are not uncommon in any tertiary hospital across the country and accused KTR of exaggerating the situation to make it seem like deaths only occur under the Congress government. He described KTR’s comments as ignorant and claimed they were in defense of corporate hospitals.
The minister also alleged that KTR was deliberately trying to damage the reputation of Gandhi Hospital to benefit corporate hospitals by discouraging people from seeking treatment there. Rajanarasimha warned that if such actions continued, the public would eventually stand up against these efforts.
“I was born in the old Gandhi Hospital,” he shared, emphasizing his personal connection to the institution. He reassured the public that his government is committed to the welfare of the people and urged them not to be swayed by BRS’s alleged conspiracies. “Be brave and come for treatment. We are providing all the necessary facilities,” he concluded.