Nagpur: Six major hospitals from the city will be key partners in a series of memoranda of understanding (MoUs) signed by the state govt with Tata Trusts to strengthen healthcare delivery and expand social welfare initiatives across the state.The state govt signed 12 MoUs with Tata Trusts and a separate agreement with Naam Foundation for water conservation and watershed development. The agreements were formalised at Sahyadri Guest House in Mumbai on Thursday in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who said partnerships with voluntary organisations would help accelerate Maharashtra’s development across sectors.Under the healthcare agreements, MoUs were signed with six Nagpur-based institutions — National Cancer Institute, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Central India Institute of Medical Sciences (CIIMS), Care Hospital, Swami Vivekanand Medical Mission and Midas Multispeciality Hospital.The partnerships aim to facilitate financial assistance and affordable treatment for patients suffering from serious and life-threatening illnesses under the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. The Chief Minister said the govt was committed to ensuring that no patient is denied treatment due to lack of resources, adding that support from Tata Trusts to the Relief Fund would enable timely and structured assistance to needy patients.Beyond tertiary care, the MoUs span a broader health and nutrition framework. These include strengthening services for mothers, newborns, children and adolescents; expanding access to telemedicine; improving comprehensive primary healthcare in urban and remote areas; and bolstering emergency response through integrated emergency management systems.Special focus will be placed on reducing stunting, underweight and malnutrition among children under two years of age, addressing anaemia among adolescents, and strengthening schemes such as take-home ration distribution, particularly in tribal and remote districts like Gadchiroli.The agreement with Naam Foundation centres on water conservation measures, including desilting of rivers, streams and lakes, groundwater recharge, and soil and water conservation works, with emphasis on water-scarce regions of Vidarbha and Marathwada. Climate-resilient agriculture, livestock development, forest-based livelihoods and non-farm rural employment also form part of the broader framework.Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata said the partnership with the Maharashtra govt would promote convergence across programmes related to health, education, nutrition, livelihoods, water and sanitation, with the objective of improving overall quality of life. Naam Foundation founder Nana Patekar expressed satisfaction over the continued collaboration with the state in the field of water conservation.
