A doctor from the Prakasam district named Pagadala Lakshmi Reddy recently left his position with the government because he felt compelled to aid the people in his home area. Lakshmi was described as smart and intelligent when she was born to farmer couple P Chinna Venkata Reddy and Subbamma. She never showed much interest in traditional textbook education. He was instructed to take care of the family’s more than 30 cattle after failing the SSC examinations on his first try.
A year later, he was inspired to become a doctor and provide his services to the underprivileged in the Markapur region after visiting the K Ramachandra Reddy Hospital, which is known for offering free healthcare to the poor and is run by the family of the late great communist leader Puchhalapalli Sundaraiah.
That was a life-changing moment as he fell in love with books and ensured that in the next five years he qualified to pursue MBBS from Kurnool Medical College in 2005. He graduated from Rangaraya Medical College in Kakinada and went on to become a general surgeon years later.
Becoming a doctor
Dr. Lakshmi Reddy is a native of the isolated hinterland of Malyavanthuni Padu in the Markapur mandal. Dr. Reddy began his career as a government doctor after completing his schooling and worked in a variety of locations, including Dupadu, Dornala, and Peddaraveedu. He spent three years working as a general surgeon at the Markapur district government hospital.
He carried out 230 major and 1,380 minor procedures while working as a government physician. He became the primary care physician for many of the area’s underprivileged residents because Markapur is his native mandal. Dr. Reddy saw to guarantee that his patients received medications and necessities throughout the most severe Covid-19 years. He obtained ’20 lakh for the same from well-known benefactors and his family. He was most recently sent from Markapur to Narasaraopeta Government Hospital in the Palanadu district.
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When he decided to serve
Dr. Lakshmi Reddy made the decision to stay put and submit his papers because of his strong emotional connection to Markapur and its residents. He just started a clinic and now bills each patient just $30 for a consultation. Along with that, he established the Dr. Lakshmi Reddy Charitable Trust, whose ultimate purpose is to build a super-specialty hospital for the needy inside the boundaries of Markapur.
“I was inspired by the life of Puchhalapalli Sundaraiah and, thus, decided to live like him throughout my life. My aim is to offer all medical tests with a nominal fee of `100 per test, just like what AIIMS-Mangalagiri is doing. My younger brother Chinna Lakshmi Reddy is a scientist and he is planning to establish a pharma unit here in Markapur to support my ideology towards giving free services to the poor. My parents, even my wife and daughter, also support my views.”
