Andhra Pradesh appoints Venkataramana as interim public health director

The Andhra Pradesh government has appointed R. Venkataramana as In-Charge Director of Public Health, the department said on Tuesday. Venkataramana is currently serving as Additional Director of the Disease Control Programme in the office of the Director of Public Health.

Health, Medical and Family Welfare Minister Satya Kumar Yadav approved his appointment. The change comes as K. Padmavathi, who has held the Director of Public Health post for the past 33 months, prepares to retire on Wednesday, September 30.

Padmavathi has worked in various positions in the state’s Health, Medical and Family Welfare Department for 37 years. A departmental release said seven officials had been considered before Venkataramana was selected. It said two candidates had pending inquiries and two others lacked the required experience.

The department also said one official had served as a District Medical and Health Officer for only three months, while another was due to retire next June. These factors were cited in the explanation of the selection process. In a separate appointment, cardiothoracic and vascular surgeon C.

Prabhakar Reddy was named superintendent of Nandyal Government General Hospital. Reddy is currently a professor at Kurnool Government Medical College. The appointments follow the recent promotion of nine professors from government medical colleges and general hospitals to the rank of Additional Director of Medical Education.

The source material did not specify how long Venkataramana would serve as interim director or whether a permanent appointment process would follow.