Mancherial: Integrated veg, non-veg market to pave way for MCH

The work on the market was progressing since 2021 on an empty piece of land on the premises of the Roads and Building department's office near IB Chowk at an estimated cost of Rs 7.2 crore.

Mancherial: An under-construction integrated vegetable and non-veg market is going to pave a way for the proposed Mother and Child Hospital (MCH) in Mancherial district centre soon.

The work on the market was progressing since 2021 on an empty piece of land on the premises of the Roads and Building department’s office near IB Chowk at an estimated cost of Rs 7.2 crore. Foundation and pillars of the facility were already completed, spending Rs.3 crore. The work was delayed after the owner of the executing agency died.

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However, newly elected MLA K Premsagar Rao announced that the MCH would be constructed in place of the integrated market for the convenience of patients, while he was addressing pressmen in Mancherial on December 19. Rao said the integrated market at the IB chowk was an inadvertent move by the previous government.

Rao argued that the place was located close to the government general hospital attached to the government medical college. He opined that new mothers could be easily shifted to the MCH if it was situated in the IB chowk. He had opposed the decision to construct the integrated vegetable market here in the past as well.

On the other hand, the MCH was created on a piece of land near College Road and on the banks of Godavari costing Rs 17.80 crore. The facility was inaugurated by the then health minister T Harish Rao in 2022. However, the patients and equipment were evacuated to GGH when the town registered flash floods in the same year and in July of 2023 as well.

Locals demanded that the MCH should be shifted to a safer place considering the floods. They, however, expressed concern over wastage of public money. “Funds spent for construction of the integrated vegetable market and MCH would be of no use if the facility is going to make way for the hospital,” K Balaraju Sharma, a resident of the town opined.

Authorities of Mancherial municipality were not available for a comment over the decision of the legislator.