Rural service will be made compulsory for government doctors and a bill will be tabled in the next session of the legislature in this regard, Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said in the Legislative Assembly on Monday.

Replying to a question raised by H D Revanna (JD-S), Gowda said the government had recruited 1,200 doctors during the last two years. However, there was reluctance on the part of the doctors to work in rural pockets. Most doctors served in rural areas only for about three to four months and then quit.

A legislation to make service in rural areas compulsory for government doctors had become essential to ensure that  medical services reach rural people, Gowda said.

Kaiga
The State government is in touch with the Centre on rehabilitating villagers who live around the Kaiga Nuclear Power Station (KNPS), Primary and Secondary Education Minister Vishveshwara Hegde Kageri informed the Legislative Assembly on Monday.

Replying to a question by Sunil Hegde (JD-S), Kageri said, since the nuclear plant came under the jurisdiction of the Centre, it was for the Union Government to take a decision on the rehabilitation measures.

The Villagers Action Committee (VAC), which includes people living within a five-km radius of the KNPS, are on an indefinite dharna. The VAC is demanding rehabilitation and employment of people in these villages.