By Our Correspondent
NEW DELHI/BHUBANESWAR: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved upgradation of 13 existing Government Medical Colleges , Institutes including SCB Medical College and Hospitals in Cuttack in Odisha under Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY). Union PNG Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Tribal Affairs Jual Oram thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as Union Health and Finance Ministers.
Others were PMCH, Patna, GMC Bhagalpur, GMC Gaya in Bihar , GMC Bilaspur, GMC, Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh, UCMS-GTB Hospital, Delhi, GMC, Surat, GMC, Bhavnagar, Gujarat, GMC, Indore, Madhya Pradesh, GMC, Cuttack, Odisha, GMC, Jaipur, Rajasthan, GMC Agra, GMC Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
The upgradation will be done at a cost of Rs.200 crore for each GMCI (Central share: Rs.120 crore and State Share Rs.80 crore). Accordingly the total upgradation cost shall be Rs.2,600 crore out of which Central Share will be Rs.1,560 crore and that of State will be Rs.1,040 crore. It will be completed in time period of 36 months. The following GMCIs will be upgraded:
Upgradation of existing GMCIs will create tertiary care facilities. The Tertiary Care Institutions will serve as composite centres for continued professional education, treatment, patient care and multi skilling of health workers.
The upgradation of medical colleges under PMSSY broadly involves strengthening of the existing departments as well as building Super Speciality Blocks / Trauma Centres or other necessary facilities as Centres of Excellence etc. However, the upgradation process will vary from one institution to another as per the specific local needs. The facilities to be augmented during upgradation will be decided after proper gap analysis involving all stakeholders.
The population in eight States namely Uttar Padesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Odisha will be benefited where these colleges are located.
The Central Scheme, PMSSY was first announced in August 2003 with the primary objective of correcting the imbalances in availability of affordable / reliable tertiary level healthcare in the country in general, and to augment facilities for quality medical education in under-served or backward States, in particular.
This scheme had two components (a) establishment of new AIIMS and (b) Upgradation of existing government medical colleges.Under PMSSY, 58 Government Medical Colleges have been approved for upgradation. Of these, work has been completed in 16 colleges while it is in progress at other places.
