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Punjab healthcare system in bad shape

Accepting that the health services in the state were in a bad condition, Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh today conceded in the Assembly that hospitals, clinics and dispensaries in rural as well as urban areas don’t have the required staff or the medicines. Also they don’t have the required buildings.

Reiterating his party’s commitment, the minister said “All emergency services for the public will be streamlined and made totally functional within six months.”

Leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said, “Questions have been raised about Centre funds being stopped for the ambitious project of the Aam Aadmi Clinics which were launched by the government. Services in hospitals all over the state have been badly affected because the staff has been transferred to the Aam Aadmi Clinics.”

Dr Balbir Singh said, “Our project is facing teething problems. We are recruiting fresh staff and sending old staff to their original place of posting. We met the Union Health Minister recently and showed that we had not wrongfully diverted any funds.”

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) MLA Dr Sukhwinder Sukhi said, “Health system will not improve without good doctors and they will not join till the time they are paid well. The government must also work on leaving out the specialists from the emergency medical services.”

Replying to it, the Health Minister said, “We are working on increasing the salary of specialists to Rs three lakh per month from their current salary of approximately Rs 99,000. We are also considering to allow specialists to run their private OPD after they have finished their regular job hours in the hospitals.”

Giving examples of leading doctors from different faculties, Dr Balbir Singh said, “At least 100 doctors, affiliated with the Indian Medical Association (IMA), have joined our initiative to provide better healthcare to the people.”

MLA Dr Charanjit Singh raised the issue of falling standards in the ten residential meritorious schools, which were started to help bright students from the poor strata of the society. “With good staff, these schools had very good results. However, during the last five years there has been a disturbing deterioration. These need immediate attention.”

Showing photographs to the House, SAD MLA Ganieve Kaur Majithia highlighted the dilapidated condition of the road from Fatehgarg Churian to Amritsar, which has not been re-carpeted for nearly a decade against the government norms. Tribune India

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