We must continuously strive to strengthen our healthcare systems to ensure their resilience in the face of a pandemic and harness their ability to provide affordability and accessibility of healthcare services in the innermost areas of the nation.” Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya said so after laying the foundation stones and inaugurating various health infrastructure projects under Pradhan Mantri-Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM), National Health Mission (NHM) and the 15th Finance Commission Health Grants on October 15 at IIT (Guwahati). These schemes are worth₹121.51 cr.
Under the above schemes, foundation stone was laid by the Union H&FW Minister for one Critical Care Block (CCB 50-Bed) at Lakhimpur Medical College, one Integrated Public Health Laboratory (IPHL) at Jakhalabandha SDCH in Nagaon district, five Block Public Health Units (BPHUs), including two in Kamrup and one each in West Karbi Anglong, Cachar and Charaideo districts and a Community Health Centre (CHC) each in Dibrugarh and Cachar districts under the PM-ABHIM & 15th Finance Commission Health Grants.
Dr Mandavia also inaugurated the up-gradation of four sub-district hospitals at Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa and Jorhat districts and construction of four CHCs at Barpeta, Hailakandi and Sivasgar districts under NHM.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Mandaviya said, “We need to make healthcare affordable and accessible through holistic development of robust healthcare infrastructure while prioritising research and development and initiatives such as Heal in India, Heal by India”. Underscoring the need to synergize and work in unison, the Union Minister stated that “healthcare infrastructure should consolidate integration at block, district, regional levels to monitor surveillance of any new variant or disease entering our nation”.
Dr. Mandaviya commended the initiatives undertaken in Assam for medical, dental and nursing colleges. “This ceremony will mark a crucial milestone in the ongoing efforts of the Government towards strengthening our healthcare infrastructure and ensuring that quality healthcare reaches every citizen of our nation, even in the most critical times,” he said.
While delivering his keynote address at the Amrit Kaal Vimarsh Viksit Bharat @2047, the Minister highlighted the Government’s commitment and resolve to empower the youth and urged them to leverage existing grants and schemes to innovate in building a healthier nation.
He also interacted with students of IIT (Guwahati), AIIMS, Guwahati and NIPER. He added that India’s vision of healthcare services extends to opportunities across the world wherein the skilled health workforce of the nation can easily pursue global opportunities citing the example of medical colleges in Assam teaching Japanese language to facilitate placement of Indian medical workforce abroad.
