Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 26: The health institutions in hilly and tough terrain districts of the State are reeling under acute shortage of manpower as comfort of the influential doctors and para-medical staff was always given preference over the healthcare requirement of the people.
This can be gauged from the official figures provided by the Minister for Health, Ch Lal Singh in response to the questions of PDP MLA, Shah Mohammad Tantray and BJP MLA from Doda, Shakti Parihar in the Legislative Assembly.
According to the data, against 50 sanctioned posts of Specialists in Doda district, 27 are lying vacant. Similarly, against 156 posts of doctors, 110 are lying vacant. Though some doctors have completed their normal tenure of posting but they have not been transferred in view of the shortage of manpower.
On the other side, there are numerous doctors in various hospitals of Jammu, who have completed their normal tenure but could not be transferred to hilly and remote areas till date because of their political and other connections.
The data further said that against sanctioned strength of 33 Specialists in Poonch district only 12 are in position and against 33 sanctioned posts of Medical Officers, 6 are in position in District Hospital.
Similarly, in CHC Mandi against five sanctioned posts of Specialists 2 are in position and against 7 sanctioned posts of Medical Officers, 5 are in position. There is shortage of 50 doctors in District Hospital, 18 in SDH and 40 in PHCs. Similarly, 51 posts of para-medical staff are lying vacant in District Hospital Poonch, 5 in SDH and 17 in PHCs.
Admitting that comforts of the influential doctors and paramedical staff was given preference at the cost of healthcare facilities to the people in hilly and remote areas of the State, Minister for Health, Ch Lal Singh announced on the floor of the House that he would leave no stone unturned to ensure justice with such areas and for the same he would initiate drastic steps.
“The days of using political and other pressures have gone as I have assumed the charge of the department with the sole objective of improving the system”, he said, adding “consolidation and upgradation of health sector is the priority of the Government and necessary measures have been initiated to fill up the vacant posts of medicos and para-medicos in the hospitals”.
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