KCR’s NIMS visit: Owaisi questions govt priorities; rues Osmania hospital upgradation delay

Hyderabad: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi strongly criticized the government's priorities at a time when Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is all set to lay the foundation stone for the expansion of NIMS.

Hyderabad MP said the delay in funding for the upgradation of Osmania Hospital is a ‘blatant injustice’ with the people of his constituency.

In a strongly worded statement on Twitter, he sought answers from the Chief Minister.

Referring to a series of meetings with Health Minister T Harish Rao and other officials, he said the restoration of old buildings and construction was estimated to be Rs 560 crores.

“This amount is peanuts for a ‘prosperous’ state government that seems to have funds for everything in the world,” he tweeted.

He said despite AIMIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi’s meeting with Harish Rao and engineers, ‘no progress has been made’ in this direction.

“Osmania Hospital urgently needs upgradation & new building. Why Hyderabadis are being neglected? This is a blatant injustice against the people of the Hyderabad constituency. It is also a grave disservice to doctors, medical students, and people of Telangana who come to Hyderabad for treatment,” he said.

AIMIM chief questioned the use of public money if it does not help the poor. "What other reason is there for the delay in starting work on Osmania Hospital?" he asked.

Batting for new structure

Asaduddin has demanded the construction of a new building for the past two years. In 2021, he called for constructing a new building even if it meant sacrificing heritage structure triggering an outcry from activists. During his visit, he was very optimistic about the fund allocation.

Meeting with Ministers and Engineers

A year later in May 2022, he along with Akbaruddin Owaisi held a meeting with a group of Ministers including Mahmood Ali, Talasani Srinivas Yadav besides Harish Rao. Engineers were asked to submit a report at the earliest. He later pegged the estimate at Rs 560 crore. He also came in support of restoring the old structure while making a U-turn on his earlier statements.

Originally proposed by KCR in 2015

During his visit to OGH in 2015, KCR found the structure to be dilapidated and felt restoration would not help. He promised to construct a new building.