VIJAYAWADA: The month-long suspense ended with the government sanctioning the super speciality hospital and research centre to Mangalagiri by overruling the demands of the Krishna district leaders. A decision to this effect was taken by CM Kiran Kumar Reddy at a high-level review meeting of health department in Hyderabad on Monday. Sources said special chief secretary to the CM, Jandhyala Satyanarayana, prevailed upon the CM to grant the hospital to Mangalagiri. Incidentally, Satyanarayana is a native of Guntur district and he had cleared the proposal for setting up the super speciality hospital at Mangalagiri instead of Vijayawada when he was principal secretary, health.
According to sources, health secretary P V Ramesh, his wife and director, medical education (academic), Ramanamma and NTR Health University vice-chancellor I V Rao backed the proposal to set up the research centre and hospital at Mangalagiri at the review meeting. Sources said Guntur MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, who has been fighting for the mega project, pushed the proposal through Satyanarayana to get it cleared by the CM.
"Though the hospital project was cleared by late CM YSR, pressure from Krishna district MLAs made his successor K Rosaiah to put it on the backburner," said an overwhelming Rayapati. The project was granted in 2005 as YSR wanted to develop a super speciality hospital in the heart of the coastal region on the lines of Nims in Hyderabad.
YSR had asked the officials to make use of the reserve funds of Sri Kanakadurga temple to the tune of Rs 50 crore and promised to release another Rs 50 crore from the state budget for the hospital. As Mangalagiri is located between Vijayawada and Guntur, the officials felt it would be the perfect place to set up the hospital.
Over 200 acres of land is available in Mangalagiri, of which about 70 acres would be used for the super speciality hospital in the initial stages. Problems arose only after the public representatives from Krishna district, including Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal, insisted that the hospital be located in Vijayawada.
