Medical college construction in PPP mode not privatisation, says Minister Kandula

Vijayawada: Minister for Tourism Kandula Durgesh on Sunday refuted the allegations made by the YSR Congress Party regarding the construction of medical colleges under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. He stated that the YSRCP’s claims that the government is ‘privatising’ these institutions are false and misleading.

Speaking to the media, Minister Durgesh clarified that the PPP model is being adopted to speed up construction. He emphasised that the ownership and control of these colleges will remain with the state government, ensuring that medical education becomes accessible to a wider population. ”These new colleges and upgrades to existing ones will increase MBBS seats by at least 150 per college,” he said.

The Minister accused the YSRCP of spreading misinformation, stating that they are distorting the facts by claiming that colleges worth Rs 8,500 crore are being leased to ‘benamis’ for a mere Rs 5,000 crore. ”This decision was made after extensive deliberation and discussion within the cabinet to improve medical education and healthcare services in the State,” he added.

Durgesh criticised former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy, highlighting the irony of his opposition to the PPP model. ”Jagan Reddy introduced a ’self-finance’ policy that effectively put medical seats up for sale at a fee of Rs 12 lakh. It’s strange that he is now criticising the PPP model,” the Minister stated. He also dismissed Jagan’s claim that the coalition government is privatizing the 17 medical colleges supposedly built by the previous YSRCP government.

The Minister revealed that despite a total estimated cost of Rs 8,500 crore for all the colleges, the previous YSRCP government spent only 17% of the budget.

He questioned the status of the five colleges the YSRCP claims to have completed, noting they lack basic staff, hostels, and administrative systems, with classes yet to begin.

The current coalition government is working to complete these stalled projects, with the goal of getting them operational. The government has already launched the medical college in Paderu for the 2024-25 academic year and aims to upgrade colleges to meet National Medical Commission standards, targeting the launch of at least one new college with 100 MBBS seats annually.

”The coalition government is committed to completing the colleges and making more seats available for students, while the YSRCP is raising a ruckus and confusing the public,” Durgesh said. ”Are they not concerned about the future of our students? The accusation that medical education will become inaccessible to the poor is completely baseless.”