Kerala Ministers Veena George and KN Balagopal lock horns in Cabinet over doctor recruitment; CM steps in

Thiruvananthapuram: A dispute arose between the Health Minister and the Finance Minister over the appointment of doctors in medical colleges. The disagreement, sparked by the Finance Department’s objection to Health Minister Veena George’s proposal to appoint 180 doctors in the newly established medical colleges at Kasaragod, Wayanad, Idukki and Konni, escalated to Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting.

The Finance Department had reportedly approved only 30 posts for two of the colleges, which angered Minister Veena George. Finance Minister K N Balagopal maintained that no further posts could be sanctioned due to the state’s financial constraints. The discussion turned heated, prompting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to intervene and assign Chief Secretary A Jayathilak to find a solution.

The Health Minister had written to the Finance Department months ago requesting the creation of 180 doctor posts across the four new medical colleges. However, the Finance Department decided that only 30 posts could be sanctioned for the Kasaragod and Wayanad colleges, which led to the disagreement. The Finance Minister also suggested that 34 doctors from Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode Medical Colleges could be redeployed to the Idukki and Konni institutions.

Minister Veena George argued that both Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode Medical Colleges were already overloaded with patients and that transferring doctors from there would severely affect their functioning. She insisted that all four new colleges, where MBBS courses are also being conducted, require 180 dedicated doctor posts. Although the Chief Secretary has been tasked with resolving the matter, Health Department officials fear the issue may be delayed due to the upcoming elections.