Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala has sought the Centre’s approval to establish a second govt medical college in Thiruvananthapuram district, with health minister K Muraleedharan urging the Union govt to grant clearance in time to begin admissions in the current academic year.
The demand was raised by Muraleedharan during an online review meeting on the National Health Mission chaired by Union health minister J P Nadda.
Muraleedharan said the Thiruvananthapuram General Hospital is fully equipped with the infrastructure and manpower required to be upgraded into a medical college with an annual intake of 100 MBBS students. He also sought the immediate release of Rs 150 crore in central assistance for the proposed institution.
Responding to the request, Nadda said the Centre earmarked Rs 15,000 crore to create 10,000 additional medical seats across the country and assured that Keralam’s proposal would be considered under the scheme.
The state also renewed its demand for an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Kerala. Muraleedharan informed the Union minister that 10 potential sites were already identified and urged the Centre to complete the feasibility study, finalise the location and accord approval for the project at the earliest.
Nadda acknowledged the state’s demand as legitimate and assured that the remaining formalities would be completed to facilitate the establishment of the AIIMS within a time-bound framework.
The minister also sought central assistance for a series of healthcare infrastructure projects under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY). These include super-speciality blocks at the govt medical colleges in Idukki, Manjeri and Wayanad; super-speciality hospitals at Haripad and Kalpetta; trauma care centres and burns units in all districts; new medical colleges in Wayanad, Idukki and Kasaragod; Centres of Excellence in genetics, neurosciences and cardiac sciences; and strengthening emergency medicine services, including the appointment of emergency medical technicians.
