A COVID Care Centre was opened at the Beedi Workers’ Hospital at Kalyanagiri in Mysuru on Tuesday.
Minister in charge of Mysuru district S.T. Somashekar, who was present at the inauguration, assured to improve the facilities at Beedi Workers’ Hospital so that the facility is made use by people residing in Narasimharaja Assembly segment not only for treatment of COVID-19, but also for other ailments in future.
Regretting the neglected state of the hospital, Mr Somashekar assured to bring Health Minister Sudhakar to the facility on his next visit for a spot inspection so that developmental programmes can be chalked out.
Former Minister and MLA representing Narasimharaja Assembly constituency Tanveer Sait said the hospital, which comes under the Centre’s Labour Department, should be taken over by the Karnataka’s Health and Family Welfare Department. A decision, however, was taken at a meeting with Health Minister K. Sudhakar in Mysuru recently to start the COVID care facility at Beedi Workers’ Hospital.
The centre has 16 oxygenated beds. In a phased manner, the capacity will be increased to 100 oxygenated beds and 200 general beds, Mr. Sait said.
Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) chairman H.V. Rajeev agreed to arrange beds from MUDA. Mysuru City Corporation will shortly be procuring about 150 beds for the facility, he said.
In view of the shortage of oxygen, Mr. Sait said he had appealed to MUDA to install an oxygen generating facility on the hospital premises. To make up for shortage of human resources at the facility, Mr. Sait said the Minister had given permission for appointment of necessary medical and paramedical personnel on contract directly.
He said a request has also been made to the Minister in charge of the district to permit use of State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) to manage the centre.
During the first wave of COVID-19 last year, Mr Sait said Covid Care facilities had been set up at Farooqia BEd college in Udayagiri and Andalus School in Rajiv Nagar. But, this year the COVID Care Centre will function from the Beedi Workers Hospital.
