CHENNAI: Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami slammed the state government over the unfilled posts of deans of the government medical college and hospitals and vacant posts of doctors, nurses and paramedical staff in government health sector.

Palaniswami, in a statement, said that the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court posed a series of questions to the DMK government over the functioning of the government medical colleges without regular deans.

The HC questioned the state if the government is unable to fill the vacant posts of deans, why is it opening new medical colleges?

“I have already raised the issue that several posts of doctors, nurses and paramedical staff have been lying vacant and I asked the government to fill the posts with doctors, who worked in the government sector during the COVID pandemic,” he added.

EPS also pointed out a news report on stagnation of sewage near the cardiology and neurology departments on the premises of the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital and said, “It poses serious health hazard for the patients.

Apart from this, the authorities have failed to maintain the latrines properly in the hospital.

The patients were unable to use them for the last one week,” said Palaniswami quoting the news report and questioned whether this government is catering to the needs of the people, who are seeking medical care, or turning the hospitals into a breeding source of diseases?