Kerala Minister's praise for private hospitals stirs row, he backtracks later

A statement by Kerala Minister for Fisheries, Culture and Youth Affairs, Saji Cherian, praising private hospitals has placed the state’s health department in a difficult position. Speaking to a regional media channel, the Minister remarked that certain private hospitals possess more advanced technology than their government counterparts, and that people seeking such treatment could opt for the private sector.

Recalling a personal experience from 2019, Cherian said he was critically ill with dengue and had to be moved out of a government hospital to a private facility. “When I was down with dengue in 2019, I went to the government hospital. When I was about to die while being treated at the government hospital, it was advised to take me to Amrita hospital. I was shifted there and was in treatment for 14 days. I was saved. Is Amrita hospital bad? In the private sector, there are hospitals with advanced technology. Government hospitals might not have that level of facilities yet. So you can go to a private hospital to get advanced treatment,” he said.

Cherian made the comment in response to a question on why several ministers, despite declaring Kerala as number one in public health, still opt for treatment in private hospitals. He added that many people, including ministers, choose private hospitals because they want the best available treatment.

Following widespread criticism, Cherian later issued a clarification, saying his words were being misrepresented. “The propaganda that I have spoken disparagingly of government hospitals in Kerala is completely baseless. When I was unconscious and in a very critical condition due to dengue fever, the doctor at the government hospital who treated me referred me to a private hospital in Kochi and told my relatives. It was a decision taken considering my health condition at that time and the need for treatment. If I had been referred to the medical college, I would have been taken there. Moreover, the decision was not made because one treatment system was bad or another was better. It is objectionable to distort that statement incorrectly,” he wrote.

The controversy comes at a time when the ruling CPI(M) leadership is already under scrutiny over the state of Kerala’s public health system. Health Minister Veena George is facing mounting pressure following a wave of protests by the Opposition. These protests have escalated after the recent death of a woman in the collapse of an old building at Kottayam Medical College, and, in a separate development, a senior doctor at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College disclosed that surgeries were being postponed due to a shortage of essential equipment.

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