Upset over the sorry state of affairs at the district hospital in Haveri, where patients in the children and maternity wards were being treated under a leaking ceiling, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed senior officials to suspend an Assistant Executive Engineer of Health Department on July 25.
The Chief Minister arrived in Haveri on July 25 for a review meeting, along with his cabinet colleagues. He visited the district hospital in the wake of reports about the sorry state of affairs in the government-run health facility.
On seeing leaking ceilings and walls in the children’s ward, maternity ward and emergency care ward, the Chief Minister made no attempt to hide his displeasure. Without mincing words, he sought to know from the district surgeon and the engineer, why they permitted work to be taken up without making alternate arrangements for patients. “Don’t you have humanity? Are you here for grazing donkeys? Don’t you get salaries,” he asked angrily.
When Deputy Speaker of Karnataka Assembly Rudrappa Lamani informed the Chief Minister about the delay in execution of work by the contractor, Mr. Siddaramaiah sought to know why he had not been blacklisted yet.
When the Assistant Executive Engineer tried to clarify, Mr. Siddaramaiah sought to know whether there was shortage of funds for the work. He then called Additional Chief Secretary T.K. Anil Kumar in the Health Department and directed him to suspend the AEE.
Subsequently, Mr. Siddaramaiah visited other wards in the hospital and enquired about the health of patients.
On getting to know about the Chief Minister’s visit, many women attending to their relatives in the hospital tried to shake hands with him. The police team escorting the CM had a tough time in crowd management.
