PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

CHENNAI

 

RS.1000 CR. TRAUMA CARE NETWORK ON HIGHWAYS : DR ANBUMANI RAMADOSS

 

Chennai , August 07, 2005

 

          The centre will soon launch a nation-wide trauma care network covering the golden quadrilateral and the north-south and east-west corridors of national highways in the country. This was announced by the Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr Anbumani Ramadoss while laying the foundation stone for the trauma care center at the Government General Hospital, Villupuram today.

 

          Dr Ramadoss said that under the new scheme a super-speciality hospital would be identified and upgraded with tertiary level trauma care facilities at every 700 km of national highways at a cost of Rs. 10 crore each. A speciality hospital at a cost of Rs.5 crore would be upgraded at every 300 km stretch and a primary hospital with trauma care facilities would be upgraded at a cost of Rs.3 crore at every 100 km of national highways, he added. In addition, ambulances would be pressed into service at every 50 km stretch of the highways throughout the country under the scheme, Dr Anbumani Ramadoss disclosed.

 

          The Minister said though the quality of the roads and the vehicles had gone up, the quality of driving did not improve in the country resulting in numerous accidents. He called for stringent procedures for issue of driving licence at par with the developed countries.

 

          Dr Anbumani Ramadoss pointed out that though his Ministry announced a grant of Rs.1.43 crore for the setting up of a highway trauma care center at Villupuram nearly a year back, it has not materialized due to the inaction on the part of the state government.

 

          Road accidents claimed more lives in the country than any other disease like malaria and tuberculosis and every effort should be made to prevent the accidents and to provide immediate medical attention to the victims, Dr Anbumani Ramadoss asserted.

 

          The Minister said that though about 73 per cent of the population lived in villages only 25 per cent of the medical facilities were available to them. The centre has launched the National Rural Health Mission recently to ensure that the farmers, agricultural labourers and the downtrodden in rural areas get quality medical care as available in urban areas, he added.

 

          The Union Minister of State for Railways Thiru R Velu and Thiru G Dhanraj, MP participated in the function.

 

BKVS/pms                                 15:00

 

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