BENGALURU: Even though the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology requires 1,296 staffers for its Bengaluru branch and 58 for its Kalaburagi one, the Finance Department has sanctioned only 620 posts.
Most of the posts are for nurses and some for assistant professors. However, no professor posts have been sanctioned for any department.
“Out of the 620, 127 posts are expected to be filled up immediately in Bengaluru and the remaining 493 will be sanctioned as soon as 450 beds are made ready. This will be completed by December or January. Of the posts sanctioned, 550 are for nurses and two for associate professors in Bengaluru and one in Kalaburagi. However, no posts of professors have been sanctioned for any of the 20 departments,” said KMIO director Dr C Ramachandra.
Nuclear medicine, pathology and radiation oncology are some of the departments that do not have professors at the moment. This translates to just a few doctors handling a larger patient load every day and longer work hours for the staffers.
Facelift in terms of white-topping of roads inside the Bengaluru institute, development of footpaths and setting up of streelights was put on hold when Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa put the brakes on the white-topping project of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike.
“For now, the institute is going ahead with asphalting of roads with its own funds. White-topping may be taken up later when the project resumes,” the director said.
Corporate social responsibility funds are being used to redesign the gate. The institute is also seeking donors for the facelift of the building with cladding.
Meanwhile, the institute is planning to start a 100-bed hospital in Tumakuru at a cost of Rs 100 crore and Rs 60 crore has been approved by the Finance Department. The institute is awaiting cabinet approval for the project.