AMALAPURAM: Konaseema district Collector Himanshu Shukla directed the district medical and health officer (DMHO) and Amalapuram revenue division officer (RDO) to inspect the Pallamkurru primary health centre (PHC) and enquire about the problems being faced by the staff and patients.
The development comes a day after TNIE published a report ‘Konaseema PHC reels under officials’ apathy’, highlighting the lack of basic facilities at the health centre in Pallamkurru village in Mummidivaram Assembly Constituency of Dr BR Ambedkar Konaseema district, forcing doctors to work out of a two-room dilapidated building with just one table and chair.
District officials said the PHC would be shifted to a rented accommodation immediately. A new building for the PHC was approved in 2016 and construction began in 2018. However, only the foundation work of the building has been completed.
After a new government assumed charge in 2019, the works stopped. It has been alleged that some people objected to the construction following which the State government did not sanction bills on time.
On Tuesday, DMHO Dr Durgarao Dora, Amalapuram RDO G Kesavardhana Reddy met Pallamkurru sarpanch Nathi Alivelu and RBK chairman Nathi Satyanarayana, PHC doctors Swathy, Gowthami and staff, who explained their plight of maintaining records and drug storage in the dilapidated building.
The officials later visited the new PHC building construction site and noticed that the area was covered with bushes. They opined that more funds have to be sanctioned to resume the construction works and suggested that the APMSIDC ready the estimations as soon as possible.
The officials are planning to shift to the PHC into a vacant house opposite the Pallamkurru secretariat, and later, possibly shift to the ground floor of the secretariat building till the completion of the new Primary Health Centre building.