Shafi Parambil, MP, opening a protest event at the Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, on July 1.
| Photo Credit: K. Ragesh
Shafi Parambil, Congress MP, has alleged that the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government is ignoring government medical college hospitals in the State because they are “addicted to public relations campaigns”.
He was opening a protest meeting outside the Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, against the various problems affecting the healthcare sector in the State.
Mr. Shafi alleged that the government was also helping the “private hospital lobby” by neglecting medical college hospitals. He claimed that the rights of patients for medical care were being curtailed. Mr. Shafi demanded that the government cut down its expenditure on PR campaigns and use the funds for patients’ welfare. Highlighting the recent social media post by C.S. Haris, Head of the Department of Urology at the Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, about the lack of availability of surgical devices and equipment, Mr. Shafi alleged that even a Left sympathiser like him could not hide his disappointment over the state of affairs at the facility.
Meanwhile, members of the Kerala Government Medical College Teachers’ Association (KGMCTA) organised a protest meeting on National Doctors’ Day on Tuesday (July 1), raising various demands. Opening the protest, C.S. Aravind, KGMCTA State secretary, said that the doctors in government medical colleges were disappointed with the current situation and called for urgent reforms in the sector. The doctors raised demands such as the creation of more posts of medical teachers in view of the rising number of patients, a clear definition of their working hours, and a halt to the temporary transfers of doctors, citing inspections by the National Medical Commission and the Kerala University of Health Sciences.
Published – July 01, 2025 09:14 pm IST
