Guntur, Dec 19 (IANS) Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Saturday laid a foundation stone for an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Mangalagiri near here and said 10 new AIIMS will come up in the country in one-and-half years.
The 960-bed facility is coming up on 200 acres at a cost of Rs.1,620 crore. To be completed in two to three years, it will also make 100 medical seats available.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that the government is setting up 10 new AIIMS in the country to extend tertiary healthcare services to all the regions. There are also plans to have AIIMS in all states.
Nadda said 10 new AIIMS would help fill the gap by adding 16,300 additional beds. The AIIMS will have all super specialties.
"An important feature of AIIMS will be department of AYUSH (ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, unani, siddha and homeopathy) because we believe in holistic and integrated approach of health system," he said at the foundation stone laying ceremony attended by Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, state ministers and MPs.
While Nadda said AIIMS will be completed in three years, Chandrababu Naidu urged him to ensure that it becomes operational in two years.
Nadda said steps were being taken to add super specialty blocks in 70 existing medical colleges in the country and upgrade existing hospitals into medical colleges.
The minister said 58 district hospitals were selected for developing them into medical colleges to ensure healthcare services in rural areas
Stating that the country is doing fairly well in controlling communicable diseases, he voiced concern that non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory disorders are on rise and responsible for 60 percent of mortality.
The minister said two regional cancer centres will be set up at Jhajjar (Haryana) and Kolkata.
In addition to this, 20 state cancer units and 50 tertiary cancer care centres are coming up. He announced that one state cancer institute and one tertiary care centre will be developed in Andhra Pradesh.
Nadda said all innovations in healthcare would be experimented in Andhra Pradesh. These will include public private model, which can be replicated in other parts of the country.
Nadda noted though health is a state subject, the central government through national health mission started world's largest public health programme called routine immunisation programme
"Our commitment is that no child should die because of preventable disease and that is why 2.70 crore children every year are immunised, some partially and some totally," he said
The government has also taken up Mission Indradhanush which will ensure that no child is left without immunisation and will be prevented from seven types of diseases.
The health minister said vaccines to protect children from four more diseases were added to the immunisation programme.
Venkaiah Naidu said foundation stone laid for a number of institutes of higher education and research in Andhra Pradesh during last one-and-half year.
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