134 tests in Basti Dawakhanas from March, says Harish Rao

Health Minister T Harish Rao on Sunday informed the Assembly that from March, 134 tests would be made available in Basti Dawakhanas across the State.

Hyderabad: Health Minister T Harish Rao on Sunday informed the Assembly that from March, 134 tests would be made available in Basti Dawakhanas across the State. This was against the 57 tests available now.

Replying to a question raised by BRS members KP Vivekanand, B Ganesh and K Chander, Harish Rao said even expensive tests like Lipid profile and thyroid tests were being conducted in Basti Dawakhanas. “So far about 1.48 lakh Lipid profiles worth Rs.12 crore and 1.8 lakh thyroid tests worth Rs.8 crore have been conducted in Basti Dawakhanas free of cost,” he said.

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With the establishment of Basti Dawakhanas, the pressure on the outpatient service at Gandhi Hospital, Osmania Hospital and Niloufer Hospital had come down considerably. The outpatient number in Osmania Hospital which was 12 lakh during 2019, had come down to 5 lakh in 2022, while in Gandhi Hospital, it had come down to 3.70 lakh from 6 lakh and in Niloufer Hospital from 8 lakh to 5.3 lakh, he said.

He said the State government had sanctioned 496 Basti Dawakhanas, out of which 345 were functioning while the balance 151 would start operations from March. About 264 Basti Dawakhanas were functioning in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, 36 in Hyderabad urban agglomeration and 45 in different municipalities, the Health Minister said.

Stating that distribution of KCR Nutrition Kits in all districts would begin from April, Harish Rao said the scheme was first launched in Kamareddy district last December and extended to a few districts. The government would also issue a notification to fill up 1540 Asha worker posts, he added.