BENGALURU: Upa Lokayukta Justice K N Phaneendra has directed the state government to take immediate steps to post required super specialists and ensure facilities to the Kodagu Institute of Medical Sciences and Teaching Hospital and Mother and Child Hospital in Madikeri at the earliest.
Registering a suo motu case over the grievances being faced by the public in Kodagu district which he learnt about during his visit on January 21, Justice Phaneendra in his order noted that patients were sent to KR Hospital in Mysuru and Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru from Kodagu as there were no specialised neurologists, urologists and gastroenterologists.
The two hospitals are located more than 150 km from the district and many patients in critical condition succumb to their injuries en route while being shifted to bigger hospitals. Considering the topography of the district and the hilly terrain, shifting patients from Kodagu to Mysuru and Mangaluru is a tedious task during the golden hour, he said.
Another suo motu case
Registering another suo motu case against authorities over the deplorable and unhygienic condition of the sports hostel run by the Directorate of Youth Empowerment and Sports in Kodagu and not providing adequate and proper food to the inmates of the hostel, the Upa Lokayukta directed the state to take steps to provide proper library facilities, computers, improve the quality of food and sports activity of the inmates and repair the toilets.
“During my visit, it was found that the sports hostel was poorly maintained and the costly sports equipment provided to the inmates were all dumped in bathrooms. Even though the best sports equipment was supplied to the hostel, these were not issued to needy students. The study tables were also dumped haphazardly and they were not put to use by the students,” Justice Phaneendra said in the order.