Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday said that the Union Territory government is committed to the goal of ‘health for all’, and promoting social equality through new healthcare projects.
Sinha said this during the foundation laying of various state-of-the-art health infrastructure projects at GMCs, DHs, CHCs and PHCs across the UT.
The UT government said that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Tata Memorial Hospital and Government Medical College, Jammu for technical expertise and academic support for developing modernized cancer care facilities in the presence of the Lieutenant Governor.
Sinha also launched a social security scheme for employees under the National Health Mission (NHM) and also handed over ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakhs each to the next of kin of the deceased employees of NHM.
The Lieutenant Governor said, “The augmented facilities will contribute further towards strengthening the healthcare system and provide its benefits to people living in far-flung areas.”
The MoU with Tata Memorial Hospital for academic and technical collaboration will help in developing ultra-modern tertiary cancer care facilities and technical expertise to faculty, paramedical staff and integration of the cancer institute into national cancer grid, Tata Memorial Centre, Sinha observed.
Expressing gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi for transforming the health sector of Jammu and Kashmir, the Lieutenant Governor said that the healthcare infrastructure has changed dramatically since 2014. “Earlier, a privileged few were enjoying medical care facilities in big cities and abroad while the majority of the population did not have access even to ordinary health care facilities. With the commitment to public health, we ensured high-quality healthcare for all,” he added.
Sinha pointed out that the Prime Minister gave seven new medical colleges, two AIIMS, 10 nursing colleges and Rs 7,700 crores worth of projects to the UT to create the best medical institutions.
“PM rolled out SEHAT scheme and brought every citizen under the health care safety net,” the Lieutenant Governor further added.
Sinha further pointed out that before 2019, there were only 129 health and wellness centres in the UT and 1,275 new health and wellness centres have been set up by the government during the last two years.
“In the backdrop of a global pandemic, research, human knowledge and technical intervention in healthcare are increasing at an explosive pace that was unthinkable even a decade ago. We are devoting greater attention to medical education and 1,897 medical education seats have been increased in the last two years,” the Lieutenant Governor added.
Sinha said that the new health infrastructure at CHCs and PHCs will strengthen rural public health infrastructure, creation of human resources in the UT, and help the health department to provide quality health care to the doorsteps of common people.
The Lieutenant Governor said that additional AYUSH Health and Wellness Centres are being set up to meet the increasing demand for Ayurvedic and another Indian system of medicine facilities in the rural and urban areas.
Sinha said that by collaborating with world-renowned healthcare companies like Tata Memorial Hospital and Apollo Hospitals, the government has introduced fundamental changes to ensure the best healthcare to the people of UT.
The Lieutenant Governor also asserted that the government is moving ahead in direction of providing facilities for online appointments and digitisation of medical records of patients.
Sinha paid tributes to all health workers who sacrificed their lives while selflessly serving others. We stand with their families, he added. “The request has been made to the Central government regarding the compensation to the remaining families of NHM employees,” he said.
Sinha also urged the medical fraternity to complement the government’s efforts to make J-K Nasha-Mukt (drug-free), and also raise awareness about a healthy lifestyle.
On the occasion, the Lieutenant Governor announced NHM Employees Welfare Fund and also launched S.H.I.F.A (Stimulated Health Information Facilitation Assistant), a WhatsApp-based integrated technology extension to 104 centralized health helpline, and Asha Gullak App for tracking and monitoring of ASHA payments and performances.
Biomedical Equipment Management and Maintenance Program (BEMMP) Guidelines Booklet and UNICEF DGA (District Gap Analysis) were also released by Sinha.
Health infrastructure projects for which foundation stones were laid today included two paediatric centres of excellence, 28 maternal ICUs, 20 paediatric hybrid ICUs, 15 paediatric wards in Government Medical Colleges and districts of J&K.
Bharat Bhushan, DDC Chairperson Jammu, Anshul Garg, DC Jammu, Shashi Sudhan Sharma, Principal GMC, Shakti Gupta, Director AIIMS Jammu, Ashish Gulia from Tata Memorial Hospital, Dara Singh, Medical Superintendent, Doctors, nursing staff and people were present on the occasion at SMGS Hospital, Jammu. While health officials from across the UT joined through virtual mode.