Minister Ramdas takes Wenlock staff to task after inspection

[email protected] (CD Network, Photos by Suresh Vamanjoor)

May 22, 2012

Mangalore, May 22: S A Ramdas, State Minister for Medical Education, paid an inspection visit to the district Wenlock Hospital in Mangalore on Tuesday.

Speaking to mediapersons after taking stock of the situation, Mr. Ramdas said that overall, he was not happy with the work being carried out at the hospital.

“Every week I speak to patients of different hospitals in the state and get first hand complaints. I had received a few complaints about Wenlock Hospital and after this inspection I have found out they were genuine. 58 doctors are not on duty today. 11 doctors have been absent for the last one month and about 9 doctors from the past one week”, he said.

The minister was severe on concerned officials of the hospital for referring patients to private hospitals citing lack of specialists.

In the ADIG Department, just the technician is attending to the patients, Mr. Ramdas said. Complaints are not being attended to in the helpline service, he added.

The minister assured that issues concerning the hospital including action against irresponsible staff, appointment of specialist doctors etc will be discussed with the Chief Minister and steps would be taken accordingly. A proposal to set up a government medical institution in the district would also be put forth before the CM, he added.

On a query whether there was any follow up and improvement in the hospital from his last visit, Mr. Ramdas said that during his previous visit there was a lack of availability of medicines which is not the case this time. Maintainence and hygiene standards are better than what he saw during his last visit although there is greater room for improvement, he said.

Responding to a query on the delay in construction of the Lady Goschen Hospital building, Yogish Bhat, Deputy Speaker, Karnataka Assembly, said that the government will try to finish the project as fast as possible keeping the option of collecting funds from donors for the project open. Only a portion of the structure was brought down because it was very weak. Alternate options such as Wenlock and RMCC hospitals have been kept in mind owing to the unavalibility of the structure, he said.

Staff request Minister to sort salary issues

After the press briefing Wenlock Hospital staff thronged to the Minister and groused that they had not been receiving their salaries and proposed that their pay be increased.

Speaking to mediapersons after submitting an appeal to the Minister, Shashikala, staff nurse, RMCC, Wenlock hospital said that she and others in the section are working for a contract based period of four years. “We requested the Minister to make us permanent staff. We do not get sufficient holidays other than the weekly offs. We are being paid Rs. 7000 in spite of our work experience while newcomers in private institutions get starting salary of Rs. 8,500. Out of 35 members in the section, 12 have already left and we too are considering quitting”, she said.

The Minister has assured that he will take a decision by evening, she said.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

‘Nothing for Karnataka’: DKS slams Union Budget, flags Bengaluru neglect

News Network

February 1,2026

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Sunday criticised the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, claiming it offered no tangible benefit to the state.

Though he said he was yet to study the budget in detail, Shivakumar asserted that Karnataka had gained little from it. “There is no benefit for our state from the central budget. I was observing it. They have now named a programme after Mahatma Gandhi, after repealing the MGNREGA Act that was named after him,” he said.

Speaking to reporters here, the Deputy Chief Minister demanded the restoration of MGNREGA, and made it clear that the newly enacted rural employment scheme — VB-G RAM G — which proposes a 60:40 fund-sharing formula between the Centre and the states, would not be implemented in Karnataka.

“I don’t see any major share for our state in this budget,” he added.

Shivakumar, who also holds charge of Bengaluru development, said there were high expectations for the city from the Union Budget. “The Prime Minister calls Bengaluru a ‘global city’, but what has the Centre done for it?” he asked.

He also drew attention to the problems faced by sugar factories, particularly those in the cooperative sector, alleging a lack of timely decisions and support from the central government.

Noting that the Centre has the authority to fix the minimum support price (MSP) for agricultural produce, Shivakumar said the Union government must take concrete steps to protect farmers’ interests.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

Mangaluru–Kasaragod bus fare rolled back after Kerala protests force NHAI to shut Arikkady toll plaza

coastaldigest.com news network

February 5,2026

Mangaluru: The KSRTC Mangaluru division has rolled back the fare hike on buses operating on the Mangaluru–Kasaragod route following the suspension of toll collection at the Arikkady toll plaza near Kumbala in Kasaragod district.

The fare revision had been implemented after the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) began toll collection at the Arikkady plaza on NH-66. As a result, fares for ordinary and Rajahamsa services were increased by ₹7 and ₹10, respectively, raising the bus fare from Mangaluru to Kasaragod from ₹81 to ₹88.

Senior Divisional Controller of KSRTC’s Mangaluru division, Rajesh Shetty, said the fares were reduced after toll collection at the Arikkady plaza was stopped. “The tollgate began operations on January 13, and the toll amount was deducted from the FASTag accounts of KSRTC buses operating on the route. Following an order from the central government to suspend toll collection, KSRTC has also withdrawn the additional fare with immediate effect,” he said.

At present, vehicles travelling on the Mangaluru–Kasaragod route pay toll only at the Talapady toll plaza. The toll for light motor vehicles (LMVs) at Talapady is ₹80 for a same-day return, while heavy vehicles, including buses, are charged ₹250. At Arikkady, the toll rates were ₹130 for LMVs (same-day return) and ₹450 for buses.

Protests against Arikkady toll plaza

The Arikkady toll plaza witnessed widespread protests from January 12, the day toll collection commenced. On the second day, an action committee led by Manjeshwar MLA A K M Ashraf launched an indefinite protest at the site. Except for the BJP, leaders and workers of most major political parties participated in the agitation.

On the night of January 14, a large number of protesters gathered at the plaza and vandalised property, following which authorities temporarily suspended toll operations. The BJP later also expressed opposition to the toll plaza and criticised NHAI’s decision.

Comments