World Bank to grant Rs 50 mn US dollar to boost healthcare facilities in J&K By Vishal Bharti

Jammu: The World Bank has agreed to provide financial assistance of Rs 50 million US dollars to the Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory to strengthen the health infrastructure, while of the total Rs 881 crore allocated under Prime Ministers Development Package (PMDP), Rs 754 crore has been spent in upcoming infrastructure and strengthening the existing.

Financial Commissioner, Jammu and Kashmir Health and Medical Education, Atal Dulloo told UNI that in order to strengthen the existing health care institutions, the World Bank authorities were approached for providing financial Assistance.

?The World Bank authorities agreed to provide funding to the tune of 50 million US dollars (Rs 367.49 crore) to the UT of J&K for various purposes,? said Mr Dulloo.

He expressed that the funds were sanctioned for strengthening of major hospitals including medical colleges with CT scan machines, color dopplers etc, strengthening of ICU Units/ OTs/Labs in tertiary care hospitals and District Hospitals with provision of machinery and equipment like portable ECG machines, X-Ray machines, hemodialysis machines, analyzers etc.

?Procurement of 60 fully equipped critical care ambulances which shall be pooled up for augmenting 108 ambulance service and installation of PSA oxygen plants/Manifold Gas Pipeline for 30 SDHs /CHCs for providing better health care services and also to fight the COVID-19 pandemic more effectively, is also to be done under the financial assistance by the World Bank,? he expressed.

Mr Dulloo, however, on funds allocated under PMDP expressed that the Health Department in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir is the first department to have received the entire amount of Rs 881.17 crore allocation under PMDP, against which an amount of Rs 754.13 cr has been spent so far.

He said that 140 ongoing and new health projects have been undertaken under PMDP, out of which 91 projects have been completed, remaining 49 are likely to be completed during 2021-22.

?These works include major hospitals like 500-bedded New Paediatrics Hospital at Srinagar, 200-bedded New Maternity Hospital at Jammu, New Bone and Joint Hospital at Jammu, 100 bedded emergency blocks at GMC Jammu, construction of Boys and Girls Hostel at Jammu, Construction of Nursing College at GMC Srinagar etc,? said Mr Dulloo.

The Financial Commissioner said that the private players were also involved in the Health Sector and at present, Emergency Medical Service (Dial 102-108 Ambulance Service), Bio-Medical Equipment Maintenance and Management (BEMM) and Tele-Radiology services are presently provided through PPP mode in the UT.

?Investment in Private Health Care Sector for establishment of World Class infrastructure is also being encouraged under ?Healthcare Investment Policy? to provide quality and effective healthcare at door steps of the people for which some proposals have been received. These proposals are under examination in the department,? he added and said that incentives available under J&K Industrial Policy 2021-30 for the Industries shall also be extended to the Health Sector Projects as well.

On the similar analogy, Ayush Care Investment Policy shall also be implemented for encouraging private partners to establish AYUSH hospitals facilities and cultivation of medicinal plants in the UT of J&K, said Mr Dulloo.

The Health Commissioner said that in the past two years, additional 2558 posts of specialists, doctors and paramedics have been created to meet out the shortfall in various hospitals for providing better health care services to the people, adding, ?to strengthen tertiary level cancer care facilities, two State Cancer Institutes was approved by GoI, one at Govt. Medical College, Jammu and another at SKIMS Soura at a cost of Rs 120 crore each.?

He added that for ensuring completion of 138 health projects languishing for want of funds for quite some time, funding to the tune of Rs 589.94 cr got approved under J&K Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (JKIDFC) including Rs 200 crore for procurement of machinery / equipment.

?Rs 69.11 crore was disbursed for 84 projects by JKIDFC and out of 138 projects, 30 stand completed while to fill the gap of Specialists in the UT of J&K, DNB Courses has been proposed in five New Medical Colleges, two Existing Medical Colleges and 11 District Hospitals/CHCs,? asserted Mr Dulloo.