Odisha HRD

No politics on AIIMS (like institute) Bhubaneswar please!

Update2: Pioneer reports the Orissa health minister saying that the state has been extremely co-operative on AIIMS and the allegations of Mr. Azad is baseless. The good news is that there has been some progress in the ground and

• Out of the 14 blocks of the AIIMS, the roof works of eight blocks have already been completed.
• An alternative road has already been constructed for the Sijua village and 90 per cent work has already been completed.
• Steps have been taken to remove the high-voltage transmission line.

Following is from Samaja:

Update: TOI reports that Mr. Azad went to the AIIMS site and asked the project manager to  work in three shifts and said that he will be monitoring the project every month. The first good news is that there is a project manager and some work is actually going on.

The Central Cabinet minister of Health Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad is visiting Orissa. His answers on the lack of progress with respect to  AIIMS-like institute in Bhubaneswar is shocking. This institute foundation stone was laid by then PM Vajapayee prior to 2004 during the NDA government. Since then many reports have been made and tenders have been floated which we have been tracking here. And now Mr. Azad comes and blames the state government to hide the incompetency of the central Minitry of Health in making any progress. Note that the issue of tardy or zero progress on the AIIMS has been raised multiple times earlier, including many times in the parliament and someone even made a high court case in Bihar and this is the first time the state government is being partially blamed.

This is terrible. Mr. Azad should not play politics on such an importance issue and make sure tha the AIIMS-like institute is constructed as soon as posisble. Following are excerpts from a report in Business Standard which gives indication regarding the politics being played by Mr. Azad.

”I will review the progress in all the new AIIMS projects, including the one proposed to be constructed in Bhubanewar, to ensure these are ready in about three years. I will also speak to the construction agency,” Azad said.     

Claiming that the steps taken by the state government for the ambitious Rs 820 crore project were slow and sluggish, Azad added that though the detailed project report for the Orissa AIIMS was ready proper land demarcation was yet to be completed.     

The state should take quick steps to remove the high power transmission line at the site along with unauthorised structures and a small village relocated, the minister said.     

On its part, the Centre was taking steps to bring momentum to the project, Azad informed adding he had spoken to Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh about the need for clearance to about 90 acres of the proposed AIIMS site here.     

”Since Orissa badly needs an AIIMS, we are taking all steps to ensure that the project becomes operational at the earliest,” he said.To improve the health care facilities in Orissa, both the Centre and the state government must initiate steps for early completion of AIIMS here, Azad said.    

Following is my email to the PMO and Mr. Azad on this topic.

Dear Esteemed Prime Minister and Health Minister:

Please do not play politics on the AIIMS-like institute in Bhubaneswar.

The foundation stone of this institute in Bhubaneswar was laid in 2003. In between 5 years of UPA government rule has passed in Delhi and nothing visible (beyond a boundary wall) has happened.

For the last 5 years, people of Orissa, representatives of Orissa (both MLAs, MPs), and Orissa CM have raised this issue and of no avail. In response to various parliament questions your ministers have always given one excuse or other for the delay.

And now for the first time Mr. Azad comes to Bhubaneswar and lays blame on the state government. (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/centre-to-setnew-aiims-branches-in-three-years/64962/on ). This is playing politics on peoples lives and their health.

While the UPA government made a lot of progress on many fields (such as starting of classes on the new IITs, RTI, NREGS etc.) it has been grossly incompetent on the AIIMS issue.

To solve a problem, one must first admit that there is a problem. Please admit that your health ministry has been grossly incompetent and start over from there.

Please don’t play politics with people’s lives and their health. Please start the AIIMS-like institute in Bhubaneswar as soon as possible and to compensate for the delay as well as to take care of the backward areas of Orissa please immediately upgrade one of the exisiting medical college in the backward Western or Southern Orissa (one in Behampur or Burla) to the AIIMS level.

In West Bengal your are making a new AIIMS as well as upgrading Calcutta Medical College. In UP you will have a new AIIMS and are upgrading 3 medical colleges to AIIMS level.

In Mahasrashtra, Tamil Nadu, J&K and Andhra Pradesh you are upgrading two medical colleges to the AIIMS level. All these has been compiled from your web sites and PIBs and put together at https://www.orissalinks.com/archives/2111 .

Why not in Orissa? I sincerely hope that it is not because you had or have friendly governments in West Bengal, Mahasrashtra, Tamil Nadu, J&K and Andhra Pradesh and are eyeing UP and don’t really care about Orissa and its people?

Why do some other states get a new AIIMS as well as upgradation of multiple medical colleges to AIIMS level, and some get multiple upgradations to AIIMS level, while in Orissa no progress has happened for 5 years with respect to an announced AIIMS?

Sirs: Please pray tell us if this is not neglecting Orissa, what is?

Sirs: I again beg; Please do not play politics with people’s lives and health. Please expedite the establishment of AIIMS in Bhubaneswar and upgrade an exisiting medical college in the backward region of Orissa to the AIIMS level.

sincerely,

Chitta Baral

9 comments June 18th, 2009

Rajasthan uses a balanced approach in choosing locations for its national institutions

Update on 27th April 2011: The Central University location has been changed to Bander Sindri near Ajmer and only 80 kms from Jaipur. The Innovation University (previsouly referred to as National University) aiming for world class is now pushed for Jaipur. [Times of India]

The panel set up by the CM of Rajsthan has picked the following places to recommend to the central government for the various national institutes and universities coming up in Rajasthan. (From a Times of India report and another Times of India report)

• IIT : Jodhpur
• IIM: Udaipur
• National University aiming for world-class: Ajmer 
• Central university: Bikaner.

The committee also recommended:

• a "futuristic" heritage conservation and museology centre in Jaipur
• an institute of Food Technology in Hadoti region of Kota

Currently the following national institutions exisit or are being made in the following places in Rajasthan:

• NIT: Jaipur
• LNMIT (private but top-notch): Jaipur
• National law School: Jodhpur
• AIIMS-like institution (being made): Jodhpur

The institutions are nicely distributed between various cities of Rajsthan, although people of Jaipur and Kota are not happy. The population of these locations are:

• Jaipur (World Gazetteer 2009): 3.1 million (has inetrnational air connectivity)
• Jodhpur (World Gazetteer 2009): 988K  – (332 kms from Jaipur; has air connectivity)
• Udaipur (World Gazetteer 2009): 457K – (400 kms from Jaipur; has air connectivity)
• Ajmer (World Gazetteer 2009):  604.7K – (131 kms from Jaipur)
• Bikaner (World Gazetteer 2009): 624.6K – (321 kms from Jaipur)
• Kota (World Gazetteer 2009): 823 K (242 kms from Jaipur)

In contrast in Orissa the distribution of national institutions are more Bhubaneswar centric. Following is the status:

• IIT: Bhubaneswar
• NISER: Bhubaneswar
• AIIMS-like (being made) : Bhubaneswar
• National Law University: Cuttack (part of Bhubaneswar metroplex)
• IIIT (state-funded) : Bhubaneswar
• National University aiming to be world class: Bhubaneswar
• Vedanta University (private): Puri
• NIT: Rourkela
• Central University: Koraput
• IIIT (centrally funded): state wants it in Berhampur; center has identified as Bhubaneswar

Unfortunately, one of the reason given behind the above selection is the lack of connectivity and the size of places. Following is some information on that.

• Bhubaneswar (World Gazetteer 2009): 1.67 million  (has airport but no inetrnational connectivity)
• Rourkela (World Gazetteer 2009): 551 K  (no air connections) – 334 kms from Bhubaneswar
• Berhampur (World Gazetteer 2009): 403 K (no air connections) – 160 kms from Bhubaneswar
• Koraput-Jeypore-Sunabeda: 200K+ (no air connections) – 499 kms from bhubaneswar
• Puri (World Gazetteer 2009): 185K – 60 kms from Bhubaneswar 
• Sambalpur (World Gazetteer 2009): 258 K (no air connections)  – 321 kms from Bhubaneswar
• Jharsuguda-Belpahar-Brajarajnagar: 200 K (no air connections) – 374 kms from Bhubaneswar; 50 kms from Sambalpur

For the future, following are some of the steps that Orissa government needs to urgently take regarding developing more larger urban areas and having the national institutions more evenly distributed:

• Make sure the centrally funded IIIT is established in Berhampur
• Establish functioing airports in Jharsuguda, Rourkela and Koraput at the earliest
• Push for international flights to Bhubaneswar
• Push for upgradation of UCE Burla (Sambalpur area) to an IIEST (Indian Institute of Engineering Science & Technology)
• Push for the establishment of a branch of IGNTU (Indira Gandhi National Tribal University) in Phulbani
• Push for the establishment of IIM outside of the Bhubaneswar area
• Push for the establishment of a centrally funded KBK Inst of Engineering and Technology (along the lines of SLIET and ABAGKIET) in Kalahandi or Balangir.
• Push for upgrading another medical college (Berhampur or Sambalpur) to AIIMS level.
• Push for establishing NID in a location outside of Bhubaneswar
• Push for establishing NIPER in a location outside of Bhubaneswar
• Push for a BITS Pilani campus in a location outside of Bhubaneswar

9 comments June 12th, 2009

New Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad will try to speed up the setting up of AIIMS like institutes

Following is an excerpt from a report in thaiindian.com.

Azad said the ministry would also try to speed up the setting up of six institutes on the lines of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The government had announced the plan in 2003, but it was given a final go ahead in 2005.

Under the scheme, such institutes would be set up in Patna, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Raipur and Rishikesh. Azad also said the ministry would upgrade 13 other medical institutes in the country.

He said after the six AIIMS like institutes come up, the government plans to start two more such institutes and also upgrade six medical institutes.

May 29th, 2009

Update on the proposed AIIMS like institutions

Following is an excerpt from a recent (March 22, 2009) report from Economic Times.

… The proposal for setting up AIIMS-like institutions was first made in 2003 by the then BJP-led NDA government. It was, however, cleared by the CCEA on March 16, 2006, 10 months after the UPA government came to power.

It was decided that each site would be taken as a separate and independent project instead of clubbing all six together. The construction of housing and the hospital complex was also separated from that of hospital and medical college.

Speaking to TOI , Joint Secretary in the Health Ministry B K Prasad said the layout and master plans of the hospital sites at Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur and Rishikesh had already been approved. The approval of the master plans for Patna and Raipur is expected on March 25. Meanwhile, the Rajasthan State Road Development Corporation construction has started construction work on the residential complex (housing and hostel) in Jodhpur. The work relating to construction of the residential complex at Rishikesh, Patna, Bhubaneswar and Raipur has been entrusted to two different agencies.

Prasad said, "Hostel construction in the other sites will start latest by June and should be completed by December 2009. Hospital construction should start by October and will take 24 months to complete. Each hospital will have 960 beds with 29 super-speciality departments."

Following is an excerpt from a report in jaibihar.com.

Taking a serious note of the inordinate delay in completion of Jai Prakash Narayan All India Institute of Medical Science (JPNAIIMS) here, the Patna High Court on Tuesday asked the union government to float fresh tender on the revised estimate and commence the  actual construction  of the proposed medical college and hospital complex in 90 days.

 

While hearing a PIL urging the court’s intervention for completion of JPNAIIMS project within a time frame, a division bench, comprising Justice Shiva Kirti Singh and Justice Sheem Ali Khan, directed the Union Government to file an action taken report (ATR) on the next date of hearing.

Complaining about the dilly-dallying attitude of the centre, M P Gupta, counsel for the petitioner, Council for Protection of Public Rights and Welfare, referred to earlier records which revealed that on May 15, 2006  the estimated expenditure was Rs 332 crore, which was  hiked to Rs 533.15 crore on February 25, 2009, but till date the actual construction work had not commenced.

April 6th, 2009

Two more AIIMS like institutes and 5 more upgradations proposed

(The PIB report is at http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=47274.)

The following is excerpted from a report in Hindu. 

The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved two more AIIMS-like medical institutions, one in West Bengal and the other in Uttar Pradesh, at a cost of Rs.823 crore each. The Cabinet also decided to upgrade five government medical colleges in five States to the level of the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi.

Announcing this, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram said: “The proposed institution in West Bengal will come up at Raiganj in North Dinajpur district. The site for the AIIMS-like college and hospital in UP has not yet been identified.”

Raiganj is represented in the Lok Sabha by the ailing Union Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi.

Each institution, to be set up under the second phase of the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojna (PMSSY), will have a 960-bed hospital and will provide health care facilities in 39 speciality or super-speciality disciplines.

There will be 500 beds for the medical college hospital, 300 for speciality or super-speciality, 100 for ICU or accident trauma, 30 for physical medicine and rehabilitation and 30 beds dedicated to Ayush (Ayurvedic, Unani, Siddha, Homoeopathy).

The medical college will have a hundred under-graduate intake, besides facilities for imparting post-graduate or doctoral courses and a nursing college.

The Cabinet also approved upgrading of the government medical colleges in Amritsar (Punjab), Tanda (Himachal Pradesh), Madurai (Tamil Nadu), Nagpur (Maharashtra) and Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College of Aligarh Muslim University.

The upgrading of each of these medical colleges will be done at an estimated cost of Rs.150 crore. Of this, the Centre will contribute Rs.125 crore and a minimum of Rs.25 crore will be borne by the respective State governments.

In respect of Aligarh Muslim University, Rs.25 crore will be provided by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development.

With these additions to the earlier list the state wise distributions of AIIMS and the proposed institutes are as follows:

2 comments February 6th, 2009

Bed distributions in the AIIMS like institutes

Following is from http://www.mohfw.nic.in/EoI_FOR_PC.htm.

Continue Reading December 4th, 2008

Specs for AIIMS like institutes

Following is from http://www.mohfw.nic.in/PMR.htm.

Continue Reading 1 comment December 4th, 2008

Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Puri to have 25 universities

The Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Puri area will have 25 universities. Following is a slide on it from my presentation at the Invest India Symposium.

The color coding in the above slides is as follows:

• Red – Central govt funded universities/institutes
• Navy Blue: State govt. funded universities
• Light blue: PPP
• Green: Privately created universities and deemed universities
• Orange: Mention about colleges that are part of various universities

To compare this with the universities in the major metropolitan areas of the US and the state of California, please see: 

• Boston: 18 four year colleges and universities in the city and  24 in the surrounding areas, some listed twice as they have campuses in the city as well as in the surrounding areas.
• New York:83 colleges and universities in New York City, not counting the 22 individual colleges of CUNY.
• Los Angeles:
• Chicago: 43 colleges and universities
• California
  

The reason we use California as a reference point is that the population of California (34,600,463 in 2001) is close to the population of Orissa (2001: 36,804,660).

November 8th, 2008

Health Minister’s status report in the Lok Sabha on the AIIMS-like institutes

Following is from http://164.100.24.209/newls/textofdebatedetail.aspx?sdate=10/23/2008.

श्री राम कृपाल यादव (पटना)  :  उपाध्यक्ष महोदय, मैं आपके माध्यम से माननीय स्वास्थ्य मंत्री जी का ध्यान आकर्षित करना चाहता हूं। पूरे देश में छह अखिल भारतीय अनुसंधान संस्थान (एम्स) खोलने की बात हुई थी। मेरे संसदीय क्षेत्र पटना में भी एम्स खोलने की बात कही गई थी। दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण स्थिति है कि लगभग पांच साल पहले इसका काम शुरू हुआ था, लेकिन आज तक केवल चाहरदीवारी का ही निर्माण हुआ है। शिलान्यास के समय एम्स को कार्यरूप में शुरू करने के लिए वर्ष 2009 तक का समय रखा गया था। बिहार में कोई भी उत्कृष्ठ अस्पताल नहीं है। इस कारण दिल्ली के एम्स अस्पताल में 60 परसेंट बिहार के लोग अपना इलाज करवाने आते हैं। बिहार में गरीबी है, फटेहाली है इस कारण कई लोग इलाज कराने के लिए दिल्ली आ भी नहीं पाते हैं। बिहार के लोगों को स्वास्थ्य लाभ लेने के लिए बहुत दिक्कतों का सामना करना पड़ता है। अगर बिहार में एम्स अस्पताल खुल जाएगा, तो न सिर्फ बिहार के लोगों को, बल्कि बिहार से सटे नेपाल, असम तथा आसपास के इलाकों के लोग भी लाभांवित हो सकेंगे। कई बार हमने सदन के माध्यम से माननीय मंत्री जी का ध्यान आकर्षित कराया है। आश्वासन मिलने के बावजूद भी आज तक इस बारे में तेज रफ्तार से काम नहीं हो रहा है। पता नहीं यह काम कितने वर्षों में पूरा होगा।

उपाध्यक्ष महोदय : आपने अपनी बात कह दी है। अब आप समाप्त कीजिए।  You are now repeating the same thing.

श्री राम कृपाल यादव (पटना)  : कई लोगों के पास दिल्ली इलाज के लिए आने के लिए भाड़े के पैसे नहीं होते हैं। मंत्री जी यहां बैठे हैं, मैं आपके माध्यम से माननीय मंत्री जी से कहना चाहता हूं कि वे इस बारे में उत्तर दें कि कब से काम शुरू होगा और कब काम खत्म होगा। बिहार जैसे गरीब देश में लोगों को इलाज कराने में बहुत परेशानी होती है।

SHRI KHARABELA SWAIN (BALASORE): Sir, hon. Minister is here.  He should reply not only to the hon. Member’s question but other questions also.  I have asked a number of questions.

MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: I cannot compel the Minister to reply.

THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (DR. ANBUMANI RAMADOSS): Sir, under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana the Government of India intends to start six new AIIMS like institutions in States like  Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh.  The CCA had given approval only in 2006.  Since then we have been going through a lot of process.  One tender was un-responsive.  Another tender was a single bidder.  We had to go through the project management consultants.  In all we have to go through a lot of process and there was a delay.  I accept the responsibility for delay on part of my Ministry.  Nevertheless, I had again asked them to quicken the process.  Finally, I could say that the construction work has started in five out of six AIIMS like institutions, including Bihar, Orissa and Rajasthan.  Except Bhopal, work at other five sites has already begun and at Bhopal the work will start in the beginning of November.

          I categorically assure that the work has started and the entire construction work will be over in another two-and-a-half to three years and it will be fully functional.  Not only that, we also want to upgrade some more institutions in Northern part of the country.  We have added some more institutions, which again after getting the approval we will inform the hon. House.

SHRI J.M. AARON RASHID (PERIYAKULAM): Sir, since the hon. Minister belongs to Tamil Nadu, he should see to it that Tamil Nadu also has such an institution.

SHRI P.S. GADHAVI (KUTCH): Sir, I would like to raise a very important issue concerning my constituency regarding the development of Jakhau Fishery Harbour Project.… (Interruptions)

श्री राम कृपाल यादव (पटना)  : महोदय, मैं स्वास्थ्य मंत्री जी को तमाम राज्य के लोगों की तरफ से धन्यवाद देना चाहता हूं, जिनको इन्होंने उपहार देने का काम किया है। स्वाईं जी आप भी मंत्री जी को धन्यवाद दे दीजिए।

श्री खारबेल स्वाईं (बालासोर)  : मैं कई बार मंत्री जी को धन्यवाद दे चुका हूं।

Orissa should push for the upgradation of MKCG Medical college to the level of an AIIMS.

1 comment October 25th, 2008

Project cells created for the six AIIMS like institutes

Following is from the PIB report http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=40465.

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for creating Project Cells to expedite work in respect of 6 AIIMS like institution under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) Scheme.

July 17th, 2008