The Odisha government has requested the Centre to consider the establishment of a second All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the state.
“Odisha has a fully functional AIIMS in Bhubaneswar which has emerged as one of the leading AIIMS in the country in terms of medical education and health care”, wrote Odisha Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy in a letter to the Secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Rajesh Bhushan.
“We have learned that a second AIIMS has been established in Bihar, and a similar proposal is under consideration in another state. In view of the health care requirements of Odisha, it is proposed that a second AIIMS may be considered for Western Odisha in the district of Sundargarh,” the letter further read. He emphasised that the AIIMS at Sundergarh would serve a large tribal population in the area. This hospital could aid in providing quality tertiary service in the western region of the state.
Earlier, an MoU had been signed between the Government of Odisha and NTPC to establish a Medical College and Hospital, as a part of their CSR initiative. Tripathy referred to this infrastructure and further wrote in his letter, “This available infrastructure can be utilised for setting up AIIMS within a short period. The Construction of the project has been completed, and the equipment procurement process is going on. It will cater to a large Tribal population in the area and help in providing quality tertiary care in the backward area of Western Odisha. The location is easily accessible through road, railway and air”.
The hospital is built for 500 beds, and the college will be sufficient to have 100 students in MBBS. Notably, the first AIIMS in Bhubaneswar was established in 2012 whose foundation stone was laid by late Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 15 July 2003. AIIMS Bhubaneswar was built on an area of over 100 acres.