Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao at the assembly meeting in Bengaluru on Tuesday. | Photo credit: special arrangement
Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said on Tuesday that the transfer of gynecologists and anesthesiologists from Community Health Centers (CHCs) in under-supplied rural areas to hospitals in the taluk was done in an effort to reduce neonatal deaths following an audit of neonatal deaths in various areas of the state.
Responding to a debate on health department-related issues in the assembly, the minister sought to allay fears that the transfer of gynecologists and anesthetists from CHCs to taluk hospitals will affect rural healthcare, as alleged by the opposition.
“The audit of neonatal deaths pointed out the lack of availability of such specialists in the taluk hospitals. It also highlighted the fact that these specialists do not have much work to do in the CHC. Hence, the government has taken the initiative to upgrade the taluk hospitals to the level of district hospitals by ensuring continuous availability of such specialists in the taluk hospitals,” he explained.
“We have developed a protocol according to which the taluk hospitals should ensure the round-the-clock availability of two gynaecologists, two anaesthetists, two paediatricians and a radiologist,” he explained.
He sought to play down concerns about the work of primary health services being affected by pointing out that two MBBS qualified doctors have been deployed in place of the specialists who were evicted from the CHC. He argued that in case of complications, people can always go to the taluk hospitals.
NMR in the state
The Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR), which was 62 in the state in 2022-23, has come down to 59 in 2023-24 and 57 in 2024-25 and 48 so far this year, the minister said. The government has set a goal of further reducing it to 38 by 2028, he noted.
Rejecting claims that rural health needs were being ignored, the minister claimed that contrary to the norms that there should be a primary health center for a population of 20,000 to 30,000, the 97 primary health centers in Karnataka have a population of around 5,000 under them. Similarly, 372 PHCs had a population coverage of 5,000 to 10,000, he pointed out.
The opposition, who were not satisfied with the minister’s answer, organized a walkout
Published – 17 March 2026 23:22 IST
