Making medical colleges functional
The new medical colleges announced for the state of Jammu and Kashmir need to be made functional soon. The need for them becoming functional at an earliest will go a long way in improving the healthcare scenario in the state as the dearth of health professional is proving a big impediment to make healthcare facilities available to the people at low costs.
Therefore, the transfer of administrative control of various district level hospitals to the newly created medical colleges was a prerequisite which has after all got an administrative nod. Just yesterday the State Administrative Council (SAC) accorded sanction to the transfer of administrative control of District Hospitals (Associated Hospitals) of Anantnag, Baramulla, Doda, Kathua and Rajouri along with their assets to the five new Government Medical Colleges of Anantnag, Baramulla, Doda, Kathua and Rajouri.
The transfer of administrative control of PHC Sagam and PHC Mattan to GMC Anantnag, PHC Kalantra and PHC Bagh-i-Islam to GMC Baramulla, PHC Manjakote and Urban Health Unit to GMC Rajouri, PHC Bhalla and PHC Ghat to GMC Doda and PHC Budhi and Urban Health Centre Krishna Colony to GMC Kathua was also approved.
This also meant that 674 posts of different categories of these five Hospitals and 107 posts of five Rural Health Training Centres and five Urban Health Traning Centers, presently borne on the establishment of the Heath Department is transferred to the respective Medical Colleges along with their budgetary provisions.
These posts shall get added to the establishment of the new Medical Colleges but will be filled up on deputation basis from the Heath Department. The employees on these posts in these District Hospitals and the five Hospitals, five Rural Health Training Centres and Five Urban Health Training Centers shall be treated as on deputation from the Health Department retaining lien, seniority and promotion prospects in their parent cadre i.e Health Department. The Health and Medical Education Department will examine the cases of the deputationists as are willing to be assimilated in these new Medical Colleges after following the prescribed procedures.
The administrative approval notwithstanding, the newly created medical colleges have other issues that need to be taken up. The civil works of these five new Medical Colleges needs to be taken up on war footing and the concerned agencies need to be directed to complete the works expeditiously within the set timelines to enable operation of the classes of first year of MBBS in these Medical Colleges from their own buildings.
The creation of the new medical colleges will help hundreds of students every year to avail the facilities of studying in their home state. This will not only ensure a stoppage to the flight of cash but will also help the students to get their degrees while studying in their comfort zones.
The dearth of health professional has been one issue which the state has failed to deal with since the past many years. The initiative of establishing new medical colleges will help the state to get fresh minds in terms of medical professional who can prove to be asset for the heath sector and the state as well.
KV Network
