Punjab to get 4 new medical colleges, 500 MBBS seats to be added

Chandigarh: Medical Education in the State is to get a big boost with the creation of four new Government Medical Colleges coming up at a cost of Rs. 1500 crore in Mohali, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Malerkotla, said OP Soni, Medical Education and Research Minister Punjab.

Talking to media after laying the foundation stone of the boundary wall of Dr. BR Ambedkar State Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) SAS Nagar, Medical Education Minister informed that there would be no dearth of doctors in the Punjab as very soon about 500 additional doctors would pass out every year from upcoming government medical colleges.

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He said presently there were about 1400 MBBS seats in medical colleges( both private and government) of Punjab which would witness an augmentation of 500 more with the opening of these 4 medical colleges The land has been made available for all the colleges but AIIMS Mohali is expected to operationalize first since there is an existing 300 bedded hospital which just needs to be augmented to attach it to the Medical College. 80% of the faculty has been recruited for the Medical College and process is on for recruitment of paramedics and other supporting staff.

The NMC inspection has been applied and we are hoping to start the first batch of MBBS, this year, said he. The Medical College building will house an academic block, four lecture theatres, labs, girls/boys/hostels, faculty residences, library, auditorium as well as ample space for indoor play area/community centre. Besides, 200 bedded new hospital block will be state-of-the-art multi-storey building housing dedicated wards for ortho, paeds, ENT, derma, surgery etc, a dedicated blood bank as well as seven operation theatres.

As per available estimates, about Rs. 325 crore would be spent on infrastructure while Rs. 50 crore would be spent on high-tech equipment. The spade work is over and tenders would be floated for the construction of Medical College and hospital building in a fortnight, said Soni.

In the meanwhile consultants have been approved for Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala Medical colleges as well and designs are being reviewed. Once the building designs are finalized, the tenders would be floated for them as well, informed Medical Education and Research Minister Punjab.

Mr. Balbir Singh Sidhu, Health Minister Punjab who accompanied the Medical Education Minister for the foundation laying ceremony thanked the Bhelolpur and Jujharnagar panchayats for leasing out over10 acres of land to Medical College.

Terming the initiation of building process of Medical College as a historic event, Health Minister said it is after about four decades that a new Government Medical College is coming up in the State. He opined that the Medical Colleges at Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Malerkotla and Mohali would go a long way for the betterment of medical education and health facilities in the state. The AIIMS Mohali will also usher in the development of area, said he.

Among others, the Mohali Mayor, Amarjeet Singh Jiti Sidhu, Deputy Mayor KS Bedi, Principal Secretary Health Mr. D.K. Tewari, Director Principal Dr Bhavneet Bharti, DRME Dr Sujata were present on the occasion.

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