Former IAS officer PV Ramesh at a meeting organized against privatization of medical colleges in Vijayawada on Sunday. | Photo credit: KVS GIRI
Former IAS officer PV Ramesh on Sunday said the TDP-led coalition government’s plan to privatize medical education and healthcare through the public-private partnership (PPP) model violates the constitutional right to life as it has shifted crucial public responsibilities into private hands.
Addressing a state-level convention held in Vijayawada to oppose the PPP model for government medical colleges. Accusing the government of “using financial constraints as a pretext to divert public assets to its cronies”, Mr Ramesh reiterated that ensuring public health is a fundamental duty of the state.
‘GO 590 selection’
Representatives of various political, student and social organizations attended the meeting and unanimously demanded the immediate withdrawal of GO No. 590 which allows 10 government medical colleges in Andhra Pradesh to be run on PPP model and said that the government should run these medical colleges.
CPI state secretary K. Ramakrishna criticized the government for “handing over every sector to private entities and misleading the public by giving monetization the name of development”.
CPI(M) state secretary V Srinivasa Rao demanded that the government release the recent SBI reports on medical colleges. He accused the coalition government of destroying the public sector under the guise of Vision-2047.
Senior Congress leader N. Thulasi Reddy alleged that the government has resorted to privatizing medical education for kickbacks, undermining an institution that has long produced qualified doctors.
Andhra Pradesh Medicos’ Association president A. Venkateswarlu said that even a fraction of the concessions given for the proposed Google data center could greatly benefit the medical sector and create more jobs.
Former MLC KS Lakshmana Rao and former minister Vadde Sobhanadreeswara Rao condemned the move, calling it irresponsible and saying that the PPP’s politics would eventually lead to its downfall.
V. Lakshmana Reddy demanded that GO 590, along with earlier GOs 107 and 108 related to self-financing, be immediately repealed. He pointed out that in developed countries, education and healthcare remain under government control.
Planned protests
The leaders took a resolution to put pressure on the government to resign from the Central Committee and organized nationwide protests until their demand was met.
They also constituted AP Government Colleges Protection Committee with Mr. Ramesh as its Chairman, Mr. Venkateswarla as Convener and Mr. Lakshmana Rao, Mr. Lakshmana Reddy, K. Vinay Kumar and NV Ramanayya as Co-Convenors.
Published – 19 October 2025 20:59 IST
