DOGRA HERALD BUREAU
JAMMU, Feb 20
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here, saying the people of Jammu will no longer have to leave for Delhi to avail specialised medical treatment.
The hospital, sprawling across 226.84 acres along National Highway 44 in Vijaypur area of Samba district, was established under Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) to address regional healthcare imbalances, encourage evidence-based research and elevate medical education standards.
Addressing a public rally after launching and laying foundation stone of projects worth over Rs 32,000 crore, the prime minister said the number of medical colleges in J&K has increased from four to 12 in the last 10 years.
“Similarly, in the same time period, MBBS seats in J&K has more than doubled from 500 to 1300,” he said, highlighting that “there were no PG medical seats in J&K before 2014 and today there are 650 PG medical seats in the Union Territory”.
He said 35 new nursing and paramedic colleges are also coming up in the region which will lead to a considerable increase in nursing seats as well.
On inaugurating AIIMS Jammu, the prime minister said the Union government has added 15 new AIIMS in the last 10 years, including two in J&K alone.
“After the commissioning of AIIMS Jammu, people of Jammu will no longer have to leave for Delhi to avail specialised medical treatment, which will help them save valuable time and resources,” he said.
The prime minister highlighted the rapid speed of transformation of infrastructure in all the sectors of the country.
He reiterated his vision of India to become Viksit Bharat by 2047 and appealed to the people to work towards that vision.
He said a Viksit Jammu & Kashmir is a pre-requisite to Viksit Bharat and the various developmental and upliftment projects of the central government in J&K are aimed at fulfilling that vision into reality.
Lt Governor Manoj Sinha thanked the Union government for fulfilling many long-cherished aspirations of the people of J&K, be it in bringing development and benefits of central schemes to the marginalised sections or in provisioning two AIIMS to the region.
“The last five years have witnessed a transformation in J&K especially in improving the health, education, security and infrastructure landscape of the region which is evident in the decline of terrorism by 75 per cent and growth of investment and new opportunities,” he said.
Sinha also pointed out that “under the leadership of Modi, J&K has become the only region in India having AIIMS, IIT, IIM and other institutions of eminence”.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh highlighted the importance that the government has given towards enhancing infrastructure development in the country and especially in J&K.
He said many of these development projects were very ambitious from the start and credited the prime minister for pro-actively pursuing them to ensure that development reaches the last mile.
The AIIMS Jammu is set to offer comprehensive medical services, with an expected daily footfall of 2000-3000 patients in the outpatient department. The Phase-1 consists of establishing 750 beds, including 193 ICU beds catering to trauma care, general care and super-specialties, an official spokesman said.
He said AIIMS Jammu plans to build approximately 50 departments, encompassing both general and specialised care.
Advanced facilities like Nuclear Medicine, 20 Modular OTs, MRI and CT Scan operating round-the-clock will ensure that humane and continuous care is readily available, he said.
Additionally, the spokesman said AIIMS Jammu’s dedicated two-storey ‘Aayush Block’ with 30 beds alongside other facilities and partnerships, reflects a holistic healthcare approach merging traditional and modern medicine to enhance regional health outcomes.
AIIMS Jammu will have an annual intake of 100 students for its MBBS programme and 60 students for nursing. It will also introduce post-graduate programmes in Medical, Dental (MD/MS/MDS), Nursing, Super Specialisation programmes (DM/MCh), Doctorate (PhD) degrees, and more in the future.
With 54 per cent of its faculty and nearly 80 per cent nursing officers being women, AIIMS Jammu prioritises women empowerment through equal opportunities, supportive work environments and gender-sensitive policies, the spokesman said.
