Panel Wants Rs.1,750 Crore of Public Funds for Medical Colleges, Not Statue

Vijayawada: The Government Medical Colleges Protection Committee has requested the NDA coalition regime to divert ₹ 1,750 crore public funds proposed for a mega statue for people-centred work, especially in health and education.

Addressing a media conference in Guntur on Sunday, members of the committee asked the government to abandon plans to build a 600-metre, 3,500-tonne bronze statue of late NT Rama Rao near the capital Neerukonda. Instead, he suggested that the money be used to complete seven pending government medical colleges that could be named after NTR.

The head of state of the committee is Dr. “This will be a lasting tribute to NTR as these hospitals will serve a public purpose,” said Ala Venkateswarlu.

He recalled that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had earlier criticized the construction of a luxurious palace in Rushikonda by former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. He quoted Naidu as saying that two medical colleges can be built with the ₹ 500 crore spent on Rushikonda palace.

Dr. Venkateswarlu questioned the logic behind proposing a statue worth ₹1,750 crore, arguing that this amount could be used to complete seven medical colleges under construction. He cited courts that rejected a similar attempt to build an MGR statue with public funds in Tamil Nadu.

Former MLC and Jana Vignana Vedika state president KS Lakshman Rao said the coalition government borrowed more than ₹3 lakh crore in 18 months and paid interest of more than ₹7,000 crore per month. He said in such cases, funds should be spent on basic needs such as education and health.

Jana Chaitanya Vedika state president Vallamreddy Lakshmana Reddy reminded the government of NTR’s legacy of providing rice at a price of ₹2 per kg. He said allocating funds for education, healthcare, literacy, farmer support and price stability would be a real tribute to NTR.

Dalit Bahujan Front founder Korivi Vinay Kumar advocated for skill development, employment generation and farmer support infrastructure as well as super specialty hospitals in backward areas, all named after NTR.