Kerala may not get approval for an All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) anytime soon as the State government’s proposal is yet to find favour with the Union government.
The Centre’s lukewarm attitude towards the demand was indicated in the latest response from Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Bharati Pravin Pawar. While replying to a question from John Brittas of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) in the Rajya Sabha, the Minister said the proposal had not been approved in the current phase of the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY). This comes even as the State government is going ahead with acquiring private land at Kinalur and Kanthalad villages of Kozhikode district to establish the institute at Kinalur.
Health Minister Veena George told The Hindu on Wednesday that this was quite unfortunate as it reflected the Centre’s neglect towards Kerala’s genuine needs. “The Union government had earlier told both Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and me that steps were being taken to set up the AIIMS in Kerala. We are eligible for it too,” she added.
Ms. Pawar said AIIMSs were being set up in different parts of the country in phases keeping in view the gaps in availability of tertiary healthcare facilities. “Till date, 22 AIIMSs have been sanctioned under the scheme. The government of Kerala has identified the proposed four sites for setting up AIIMSs — Kinalur in Kozhikode district, Kattakada taluk in Thiruvananthapuram district, and sites in Kottayam and Ernakulam districts,” she said in the reply. But the Minister said it was yet to be approved.
The MP had sought to know whether the request of the Kerala government for according sanction to set up AIIMS was pending with the Centre; whether the government had already identified suitable land for setting up AIIMS at Kinalur in Kozhikode district and informed the Union government and what was the response; and whether AIIMS would be announced in the current financial year.
