To ensure smooth take-off of the five new medical colleges in the State, Governor N N Vohra on August 9 called for putting in place a multidisciplinary committee of officers and experts to coordinate infrastructure and academic issues of these colleges.

The Governor also called for incentivising best practices in infrastructure development in 5 new medical colleges. The Governor has asked the Chief Secretary to urgently constitute the Committee which shall coordinate with the concerned Departments various activities related to the new medical colleges coming up at Anantnag, Baramulla, Kathua, Rajouri and Doda.

The committee shall harmonise issues like infrastructure development including construction works, setting up of equipment, hiring of faculty, paramedical staff and academic matters so that the academic activities in these Colleges get started any hiccups as per schedule.

Meanwhile, in an important announcement, the Governor called for instituting annual awards for engineers, construction companies and contractors whose work in the state is outstanding.  He also called for incentivising executing agencies for completing developmental projects ahead of the scheduled time while maintaining the quality parameters and professional standards. Such a move, he said, will go a long way in encouraging best practices in construction works.

The Governor also called for installing plaques on construction works mentioning the date on which the project was started, cost of the project, the construction agency, the name of the contractor and the date of completion. The Governor asked the Planning, Development and Monitoring Department to prepare a comprehensive list of developmental projects which are overdue for completion due to inadequate financial resources, resulting in cost overrun. He also called for compiling the details of all the financial liabilities on account of various works.

Mr Vohra said the state government will approach the Central Government with a special request to sanction one-time financial dispensation so that the work on these projects carries on without any constraints and the financial resources already invested in them don’t go waste.

The Governor said that during his recent visits to various districts, he has come across several projects which are lingering at various stages of execution for years together for want of resources. There are also huge liabilities on account of works which have been taken up without the requisite administrative approval, he said and added that to address the issue, the Government of India would be approached for one-time fiscal assistance.

“It has been observed that various departments take up developmental works without getting the necessary concurrence from the finance department. Such practices not only burden the state exchequer by creating financial liabilities but it also results in wastage of money since most of these projects don’t get completed on time due to paucity of funds,” the Governor said. He called upon all the State Government Departments to maintain fiscal discipline and put an end to such practices while ensuring that any developmental work takes place only after the approval of DPR and availability of adequate financial resources.