Improving the healthcare facilities seems to be the top most agendas of the West Bengal government these days.

While speaking on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Association of Health Service Doctors (West Bengal), Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said, “We are living in a strange world where we have wealth accumulated in a few hands and extreme poverty and illiteracy among the majority. But we want to improve. We are working on ways to increase supply of medicines, the number of public health workers and health infrastructure.”

Bhattacharjee insisted government doctors and staff to stand up and be counted as he stressed on amending the health services.

He praised the government doctors working in Lalgarh and Aila-struck districts.

However, the CM also remarked that he was depressed on the rising episodes of attacks on hospitals and doctors by patients’ families.

He feels that a commoner can’t decide if a doctor has made a mistake in his diagnosis.

Meanwhile, state health minister, Dr Surjya Kanta Mishra criticized his opponents by saying that there were not many takers for the post of the health minister in the state.

"People may criticize me. But I have been made the health minister by the party and I do not think there are many takers for this post despite what people say.”

Citing an example of his government performance, Mishra pointed out that the West Bengal government caters to at least 72 per cent of the people of the state, while the national average stands at 60 per cent.

The health minister claimed that the state had the lowest death rate: 6.3 as against the national death rate of 7.4. Moreover, in certain other health parameters viz. birth rate, infant mortality rate and neo-natal fertility rate the state had been ranked one of the best, when compared to the other states of the country.