For long as far as health care facilities are concerned, the State was lagging behind. The rural areas of the State have not benefited from the advancements made in the field of medical science. There are still a good number of villages in the State, which are yet to be served by a doctor. Inadequate health care facilities have always been the bane of the State. Though remarkable advancements have been made in the domain of medical sciences the irony is that a significant section of the population in the interior areas are still out of its bounds. The Government, though belatedly has embarked on a drive to improve the health care delivery system in the rural areas. But in spite of the Government initiatives the overall scenario in the health care front doesnt reflect a rosy picture. Much remains to be done to provide quality health service to the people in the rural areas. Due to the lack of proper health care service the mortality rate in the rural and interior areas is still quite high. Over the years the Government has set up a number of primary health care centres in the rural areas but most of them have failed to serve any purpose as there are hardly any doctors to make them functional. The shortage of doctors continues to be a major problem. The reluctance of the doctors to serve in the rural areas has only made the matter worse.
In this context the recent initiatives taken by the authorities to ensure the presence of doctors in remote and rural areas is indeed laudable. The Government has come up with several initiatives, including an enhanced pay package to motivate the doctors. Now the doctors serving in those areas would be entitled to a substantial hike in their pay packages. This initiative would hopefully send the right signals and help in overcoming the perpetual shortage of doctors in those areas. The State Governments move to set up model hospitals with modern facilities in each of the 126 constituencies will to some extent be able to serve the health care needs of the people of the rural areas. The authorities should lay special emphasis to upgrade the infrastructure of the rural hospitals to enable the doctors to discharge their duties efficiently. It is hoped that these steps will be implemented in the ground within the shortest possible time. Without proper implementation, even the best of plans cease to have any meaning.
