Sambalpur, July 12: The Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research at Burla has been grappling with shortage of doctors.

The institute caters to the needs of people from 10 districts and Chhattisgarh.

The institute has 30 professors in its 29 departments against the sanctioned strength of 36. Six posts have been lying vacant. There are 63 associate professors in the institute against the sanctioned strength of 71.

Against a sanctioned strength of 142 assistant professors, it has only 79. Besides, 45 senior residential posts have also been lying vacant since long.

The departments of psychiatry, nephrology, transfusion medicine, radiotherapy, dermatology, venereal diseases, and emergency are running without professors. The shortage of doctors has badly affected the health services in the hospital.

"The residents have been demanding that the authorities must fill up the vacancies but the government is yet to take any step," said local resident Litu Patra.

"The 1,000-bed hospital is supposed to be a premier institute and the patients should not be made to suffer due to vacancies," said Burla resident Bibhuti Panda.

The institute's dean and principal, Santosh Behera, said: "This is an autonomous institution. Its bylaws are being framed. Once the necessary laws are in place, a special recruitment drive will be conducted to fill up the empty posts."

Earlier in April, shortage of drinking water had emerged as a major problem for the patients and their attendants at the hospital. Though there were three drinking water kiosks at the entry, two of them had been lying defunct since long.