Medical colleges in 12 districts to be set up from ADB loan

In a significant development, The Shinde-Fadnavis government on Saturday decided to establish new medical colleges in 12 districts. The funding will be made from the Rs 4,000 crore loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The newly appointed medical education minister Girish Mahajan told the Free Press Journal, ‘’ The decision was taken at the meeting chaired by the Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today. There are 23 government medical colleges Of which 13 are under the Rest of the Maharashtra Region, 6 under the Vidarbha Region and 4 under the Marathwada Region. In addition, four are under construction. The proposed new colleges will be established in 12 districts without any college. These colleges will be developed from the Rs 4,000 crore ADB loan which will be available to the state government in phases. The loan will also be used to further strengthen the existing medical colleges and hospitals.’’ In addition, the loan is being available also from the International Finance Corporation.

Mahajan said the work will start soon in this regard. ‘’Not a single medical college has been allowed in the last two and half years. Citizens will benefit from government medical colleges rather than private ones,’’ said Mahajan.

Fadnavis at the meeting made a strong case for laying focus on providing good and affordable medical facilities to everyone in the state. He directed that the medical education department should prepare a plan to set up a medical college and hospital in every district in the next two years. ‘’The financial and technical assistance of the Asian Development Bank will be used for the construction and implementation of the proposed medical colleges in the selected districts and for the upgradation of the respective hospitals. The DCM hoped that ADB will cooperate with the state government and provide funds early so that the construction work of the proposed new medical colleges will start in the next 6 to 7 months,’’ said Mahajan.

A senior department official said that the department has prepared a plan till the year 2030 for the construction of medical facilities. In the first phase, the department introduced a public-private partnership strategy for setting up medical colleges. According to this, with the help of International Financing Corporation, in the initial phase, a super specialty hospital is being set up at Nagpur, as well as a government medical college at Aurangabad and Latur. Free Press Journal