Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today gave his nod to increase the number of beds from 200 to 300 at the Government Hospital in Mohali, as a pre-requisite for opening a medical college there as per Medical Council of India (MCI) norms.

 

Chairing a high-level meeting here to review the functioning of the state Medical Education and Research Department, Singh said the new medical college at Mohali would be made functional at the earliest. In order to increase the standard of medical education in the state, the chief minister asked the vice-chancellor of the Baba Farid University of Health Sciences to take action against non-professional institutions that were running medical courses by duping innocent students. He asked the vice-chancellor to take stern actions such as slashing seats of courses being run by them, besides closing them down.

Singh also instructed the additional chief secretary (Health) to immediately take up the issue of opening a satellite centre of the PGI in Ferozepur with the Centre, as a 25-acre plot had already been identified in Mallwal Kadim village. Reviewing the progress of the AIIMS project in Bhatinda, he also asked the department to prevail upon the Centre to expedite the construction of the health institution so that it is completed within the stipulated time-frame.

The chief minister directed the Finance Department to immediately release Rs 65.95 crore for the execution of new works at the Government Medical College in Patiala. Of the total amount Rs 13 crore would be spent on multi-level vehicular parking, Rs 21 crore on renovation and repair of the TB Hospital in Patiala, and Rs 1 crore for purchase of ambulances. Singh also asked the additional chief secretary to prepare a comprehensive action plan for to upgrade the infrastructure and increase faculty in the Government Medical College in Patiala. The Patiala college is one of the most prestigious medical institutions in the country, but had lost its sheen due to the "apathetic attitude" of the previous government, the chief minister alleged.

He also asked the department to work out modalities for two more medical colleges - one each in Sangrur and Gurdaspur or Pathankot. Singh said it would go a long way in strengthening the medical education and health services in the state. Regarding time-bound promotions of faculty members, he asked the department to convene meetings of departmental promotion committees on a regular basis.