Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu today said the challenges in the healthcare sector continue to be daunting and formidable in the country even today.
The Vice President was inaugurating a medical camp and two skill development facilities — CCTV network management and optic fiber technician courses and GATI drivers training institute at the Hyderabad chapter of Swarna Bharat Trust.
Speaking on the occasion, the Vice President said with the government’s expenditure not remaining commensurate with growing demands in the healthcare, the private sector has come to play a dominant role in both urban and rural areas. In urban areas, only 32 per cent of patients visit public hospitals and the remaining 68 per cent were prefering private hospitals. In the rural areas, 42 per cent patients visit public hospitals and the rest visit private ones, he added. Therefore, there is a need not only to expand the infrastructure in public health sector, but also increase the budget. Pointing out that the number of physicians available per 10,000 people was grossly inadequate in the country when compared to the developed countries, Venkaiah Naidu said while 20 physicians were available for 10,000 people in the developed countries, it is only six in India.
Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Mohammad Mahmood Ali complimented Venkaiah Naidu for organizing courses for unemployed youth in the State in the Swarna Bharat Trust. Irrigation Minister Harish Rao said there was dearth of heavy vehicle drivers in the State and the course launched in Swarna Bharat Trust today would be helpful in providing gainful employment to the youth.
Mahendra Agarwal, Managing Director & CEO, GATI Limited, said even though the road sector contributes 60% of freight transport in India, there was a lack of skilled drivers in this sector. He said there are 800 drivers for 1,000 trucks. Emphasising the need for training heavy vehicle drivers properly, Agarwal said India has the highest fatalities in road accidents. Therefore, skilled and trained drivers are needed, he said.
L&T CEO Subrahmanyan also spoke. (NSS)