Telangana govt to rework Journalist Health Scheme

Health Minister Damodar Raja Narasimha sought to know for himself what could be the new modalities for implementing the health scheme in a more useful manner.

Hyderabad: Health Minister Damodar Raja Narasimha said on Thursday that the department would rework the Journalist Health Scheme ensuring access to quality medical services to media persons in the State.

During an informal chit chat with reporters in the Assembly Lobby, he sought to know for himself what could be the new modalities for implementing the health scheme in a more useful manner. He assured them that he would take a call on the issue immediately after the present session of the State Assembly.

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Journalists urged him to take steps to ensure healthcare services to all scribes equally in the State since healthcare services in private hospitals had become costly and beyond the reach of a major segment of the journalist community. Media persons were covered so far under the Telangana State Government Employees and State and Journalists Health Scheme. The previous government had introduced this for accredited journalists and their dependants.

The Minister felt that it would be difficult in future for allotment of house sites to journalists in view of their increasing numbers and the limited availability of land in urban pockets. He said journalist housing societies could approach the government for land allotment and take up their own projects expanding vertically to meet the housing needs.