Bhubaneswar/Koraput: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Sunday inaugurated a new building of the Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College & Hospital in Koraput, expanding its capacity by 650 beds.
Majhi also announced that his government will develop a six-lane highway, the Jeypore-Bermhapur-Bhubaneswar ‘economic corridor’.
He said the new building at the hospital has been built at a cost of Rs 280 crore.
“The state government has been making available all facilities at the medical college, so that the people of Koraput and adjoining areas do not have to travel to distant cities for healthcare services,” he said.
Majhi said the medical college will benefit the people of Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, and Rayagada districts, besides nearby areas of neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
He also said that all vacant posts at the medical college would be filled up soon.
“A cancer treatment centre is also being built on 2 acre adjacent to this hospital. For this, our government is spending about Rs 41.15 crore,” he said.
The CM said there are currently 12 government medical colleges in the state, and four more will be set up in Dhenkanal, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur and Nabarangpur.
A total of 3.46 crore people or 80 per cent of the state’s population are getting free healthcare cover under Ayushman Bharat and Gopabandhu Jan Arogya Yojana schemes, he said.
“Till now, about 3.91 lakh people have been provided medical facilities worth Rs 900 crore under these two schemes,” he said.
“Similarly, 8,644 people above 70 have been provided healthcare benefits worth Rs 35.60 crore under Ayushman Vayabandhan Yojana,” he added.
Majhi said that the people of Koraput will also reap the benefits of development, as a significant amount of work has been accomplished in just one year of the BJP government in the state.
Addressing the function, Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling said another new chapter was added to the history of healthcare services in Koraput with the expansion of the hospital.
PTI
