KMSCL logo. Source: Google
Kozhikode: The medical service corporation is finding it hard to locate land for setting up warehouse for stocking medicines in Kozhikode. Despite Rs 5 crores being allotted for the same in 2012, the unavailability of land has forced the corporation to rent a private godown at Naduvannur which functions as a makeshift warehouse now. It is said that the corporation pays a hefty amount of Rs 6 lakhs as rent for the facility every month.
It should be noted that the construction of warehouses in Kottayam and Alappuzha are almost complete. Earlier it was decided to set up the corporation’s Kozhikode warehouse on 1 ½ acres of land belonging to the Government Dermatology Hospital, Chevayur. A letter was sent to the health department director in 2015 over the demand.
The discussions for setting up a warehouse in Chevayur has been ongoing ever since the corporation’s inception in 2008. However the proceedings regarding the takeover have been snail paced, delaying it forever. The delay in retrieving the land from the sports department is being cited as the major reason.
In recent developments, the medical service corporation has requested the government to allot land in the Medical College campus for setting up its warehouse. However, a response from their side is awaited.
“We are waiting for the nod from the government to begin the construction, the fund is not an issue here,” says Corporation General Manager Dr Shibulal.
“Since a major chunk of medicines in the district are usually being moved to the medical college, it would be ideal if we could set up our warehouse here,” he added.
Currently, the corporation is bearing huge expenses in transporting the medicines to Kozhikode city from its facility in Naduvannur. The corporation is bearing an estimated loss of over Rs 1.5 crores in a span of five years in this regard. The Health Minister had brought up this issue in the assembly earlier.
A discussion is rising over the safety of rented facilities for stocking medicines, ever since the Kollam warehouse fire incident.
In the backdrop of the event, the fire force had conducted a higher audit in the corporation's facility in Kozhikode and made some recommendations.
“We have fast tracked setting up of the arrangements suggested by the fire department,” says M A Baiju, District Warehouse Manager.
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