The Andhra Pradesh government’s reported plan to hand over government medical colleges to private players under the public-private partnership model has triggered a political confrontation over public healthcare infrastructure, funding and access for low-income patients.
YSR Congress president and former chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy opposed the move in a post addressed to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on X on Wednesday. He alleged that the proposed transfer of completed colleges and institutions under construction would weaken the public healthcare system and amount to the loss of public assets.
Reddy said his government had established 17 new medical colleges, of which five had opened and three were prepared to begin classes. He said the remaining nine could be completed by investing ₹1,000 crore annually, questioning why the state government was considering private participation instead.
According to Reddy’s claims, land associated with the colleges was being leased to private players at ₹100 per acre, while ₹1,630 crore in viability gap funding was being provided from public funds. The supplied report does not include the terms of the proposed PPP arrangements, the names of private entities involved, or the state government’s explanation for the land and funding structure.
The dispute goes beyond the ownership of individual institutions. Government medical colleges combine medical education, hospital services and specialist healthcare capacity, making their financing and operating model relevant to patients as well as students and medical workers. Reddy said the colleges provided free treatment to poor patients and argued that transferring them to private operators could affect the public system’s role in delivering such care.
He also alleged that ₹3,000 crore in Aarogyasri payments remained unpaid to hospitals. In addition, he claimed that government hospitals faced shortages of basic medicines and cotton, had a 61 per cent shortage of specialist doctors, and that village clinics and the 108 and 104 ambulance services had been weakened. These claims were not independently documented in the supplied material and have been attributed to the former chief minister.
Reddy called on the government to continue investing in the medical colleges rather than handing them over to private players. He warned that the YSRC would pursue legal action against those involved if it returned to power and said he would seek arrests in cases he described as involving the alleged misuse of public assets.
The immediate administrative details of the reported plan remain unclear from the available information, including the number of colleges covered, the proposed concession period, the responsibilities of private operators and safeguards for free treatment. The state government’s response and any formal notification or tender documents will determine how the proposal is structured and implemented.
