VIJAYAWADA: The AP Legislative Assembly on Wednesday passed a bill to rename Dr NTR University of Health Sciences (Dr NTRUHS) as Dr YSR University of Health Sciences.Defending the renaming of the university after former Chief Minister and his late father YS Rajasekhara Reddy, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said it was a well-thought move to give due credit to YSR and it was by no means to disrespect NTR.
Intervening during the passage of the bill, he said due credit should be given to YSR, a practising doctor before joining politics, for providing quality medicare to the common people with his innovative Aarogyasri, 108 and 104 ambulance services. Aarogyasri was a first of its kind health scheme in India to provide corporate medicare to poor people free of cost and many States replicated it.
Of the existing 11 medical colleges in the State, eight were functioning even before TDP was formed. The remaining three medical colleges (Srikakulam, Ongole and Kadapa) were established with the initiative of YSR. “Our government is setting up 17 more medical colleges to give a fillip to medicare and 20 of the total 28 medical colleges in the State are due to the efforts of YSR and his son. This itself is a credit which deserves renaming of the university after YSR,” he said.
The decision to rename the university was taken after a thorough thought process. “While taking the decision, I questioned myself many times whether it was correct or not and proceeded ahead only after thinking it was genuine,” he asserted.
Unprecedented changes are happening in the medical sector. The total number of medical procedures under Aarogyasri before the YSRC coming to power was 1,059 only. Now, more than 2,400 procedures are being covered under the scheme and the number will go up to 3,118 from October 5 (Vijaya Dasami), explained.
Jagan made it clear that they had no intention to dishonour NTR. “We believe him as a great person. Hence, we named the newly formed Vijayawada district after NTR,” he said, adding that his government is ready to consider proposals from the TDP to name any structure they constructed after NTR. Asserting that he is more affectionate towards NTR compared to Naidu and there are no instances of talking against the former CM, Jagan said, “If we pronounce the name of NTR, Naidu does not like it. If Naidu utters NTR, the latter does not like it.”
Naidu has no love lost for NTR as he usurped the TDP and the CM post from his father-in-law, which caused mental agony to the founder of Telugu Desam. If NTR was not backstabbed by Naidu, he would have lived more years and Naidu would have not become the CM. Jagan said.