Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh laid foundation stone of 100 bedded Mother & Child Hospital at Kamla Nehru Hospital (KNH) here today. He said that Rs. 70 crore would be spent on the construction of this six storied building which would have all modern health care facilities pertaining to Mother & Child.Virbhadra Singh said that Kamla Nehru Hospital was being upgraded to a full-fledged State level Mother & Child hospital and it would remain attached with Indira Gandhi Medical College & Hospital (IGMC) for Medical Education. He said that during his previous tenure a new building was constructed at KNH and presently this building has capacity of 174 beds. He said that the new building would be constructed after dismantling the old building.
Chief Minister said that the new building would have the facilities like central heating, post operative surgical beds & special wards, main & minor operation theatres, labour rooms and post labour rooms. pre and after natal care wards etc. He directed the Public Works Department to ensure quality and standard work and complete this building within a year.
Chief Minister said State Government had accorded top most priority to the health sector and efforts were being done to provide best health care facilities to the people not only in urban areas but also in remote and rural areas. He said that 100 posts of Doctors were being filled during current fiscal while 100 Doctors would be posted next year. He said that medical is a noble profession and Doctors and other Paramedical staff should go to rural areas at least for a specific period in order to serve the ailing people.
Shri Virbhadra Singh said that sincere efforts were being made to develop IGMC as a premier health institution of the State. He said that new OPD and Administrative Block buildings were being constructed at IGMC Shimla with a cost of Rs. 66 crores. He said that on completion it would provide best health care facilities to the people visiting IGMC and OPD patients needs not to go the old hospital buildings and would have the entry facilities from both Cart road through lift and other from lower road from Lakkar Bazar.Chief Minister said that with a view to de-congest IGMC and provide more space to the patients and students, Dental and Nursing Colleges would be shifted near Ghanahatti where a new complex of 100 bedded hospital would be constructed at a cost of Rs. 150 crores. He said that there would be no paucity of funds for creating and developing best health infrastructure in the State.
Chief Minister said that Dr. Rajender Prasad Medical College (RPMC) and Hospital Tanda, Kangra, whose foundation stone was laid by him in the year 1996, had been developed as another premier health institute of the State and presently it has emerged as a complete township where apart from best medical facilities, housing facilities to all staff members were made available. He said that people of six districts were being benefited by this medical institution.Shri Virbhadra Singh said that State Government intends to develop Himachal Pradesh as hub of health sector, where best health care facilities were available to the people of the State and Country. He said that apart from Government sector best reputed health institutions like Forties and Vedenta etc. would be provided all facilities if they want to establish their health institutions here.
Health Minister Shri Kaul Singh Thakur said that he had recently taken up the matter of increasing MBBS seats in IGMC Shimla from 100 to 150 with Union Health Minister Shri Ghulam Navi Azad as it was more than 50 years old hospital. He said that IGMC had produced 2773 MBBS Doctors and over 860 Post Graduate Medical Specialists in various disciplines. He said that a new building of Dr. RPMC Tanda was near completion on which 150 crores were being spent. He said that 400 posts of para medical staff and 300 staff nurses were being filled to provide proper health care to the people in the State.
Shri Kaul Singh Thakur said that many posts of doctors and other para medical staff were remained vacant during previous Government regime. He said that in IGMC out of total 597 sanctioned staff nurses only 238 were serving presently putting extra pressure on them. He said that it will take time to fill the necessary staff in the health department. He expressed his gratitude to the Chief Minister Shri Virbhadra Singh who also holds Finance portfolio for being liberal towards health department.
Medical Superintendent KNH Dr. L.S. Chaudhary while welcoming the Chief Minister said that KNH was oldest health institution of the State whose foundation stone was laid in 1923 by wife of Lord Reading and named as Lady Reading Hospital. He said that its name was changed to Kamla Nehru Hospital on 15th August, 1982 and was made State level Mother & Child Hospital on 6th March, 2006. He said that with the laying of this new complex new face and dimension would being given to KNH.Dr. Santosh Minhas presented vote of thanks. Dy. Mayor MC Shimla Shri Tikendar Panwar, former Mayor Smt. Madhu Sood, Councillors of MC Shimla, Principal Secretary Health Shri Ali Raza Rijvi, Deputy Commissioner Shimla Shri Dinesh Malhotra, E-n-C PWD Shri Pradeep Chauhan, Special Secretary Health and Mission Director NRHM Shri Amithab Awasthi, Director Health Services Dr. Kulbhushan Sood, Director Medical Education Dr. Jaishri, Principal IGMC Dr. S.S. Kaushal, Sr.MS IGMC Dr. Ramesh, Chief Engineer PWD Shri D.K. Nayar, Senior Architect Shri N.L. Negi, Retd. Prof. Dr. Tara Gupta and other officers, doctors, medical students and para medical staff were present on the occasion.