Trauma centre yet to take off.

The Kalaburagi trauma care super-speciality centre is still yet to be up and running, despite being formally inaugurated this year.

The only thing which has been completed is its building to house super-speciality facilities for treatment in neurosurgery, urology, plastic surgery, maxillary facial surgery, and a 100-bed hospital.

The previous Congress government, headed by Siddaramaiah, had sanctioned two trauma care centres in Kalaburagi and Mysuru.

The State government had sanctioned ₹21 crore to build the Kalaburagi centre and then set a deadline to complete the project by November 2017.

Officials closely involved with the project, who spoke to The Hindu, said that the State government had downsized the original manpower, including super-specialists, specialists, medical officers, nursing staff, and other staff members.

The original size of the manpower proposed for the centre was over 600, but the government recently accorded sanction for recruiting less than 200 personnel.

The government has also accorded permission to float tenders to purchase medical equipment.

But the government is yet to give the funds to go ahead with recruitment and purchasing the equipment.

The only other trauma care hospital in the State is attached to the Bengaluru Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI). They have availability of super-specialists owing to BMCRI, but finding the same personnel for the Kalaburgi centre will be difficult. Private hospitals pay higher pay packages and perks, and the State government needs to do the same.

THE HINDU