The Tripura government is steadfast in its mission to provide quality healthcare to its citizens by encouraging private medical education institutions to establish medical colleges within the state to bolster healthcare infrastructure and ensure that residents receive top-notch medical services.
Tourism Minister Sushanta Chowdhury made the statement on Tuesday close on the heels of the issue red-flagged by CPIM MLA and the Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Choudhury. The Minister said, Choudhury recently wrote a letter to Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha, urging him to halt the use of IGM Hospital facilities for the proposed Shantiniketan Medical College. In response, Minister Chowdhury elaborated on the government’s stance and the ongoing approval process.
The Tourism Minister dismissed concerns about the impact on IGM Hospital’s services. He assured that classes would primarily be held at Tripura Shantiniketan Medical College, with occasional practical sessions at IGM Hospital, ensuring no disruption to existing services. Any resources used from IGM Hospital will be compensated.
The minister highlighted a past incident where G Net Group misused the district hospital (Dr. BR Ambedkar Memorial Hospital) for Tripura Medical College and fled. Learning from this, the government is cautious to prevent a repeat of such a scandal.
“The process of approving the use of IGM Hospital for Shantiniketan Medical College is underway, following all laws and regulations of the National Medical Council,” said the Minister. He emphasized the state government’s commitment to enabling local students to pursue medical studies within the state, thereby increasing the number of doctors available to serve the community.
Minister Chowdhury explained that “Swaadheen Trust” has applied to utilize IGM Hospital temporarily until their own 600-bed hospital, currently under construction near Agartala, is completed. He clarified that the state government has not provided any free land or building for this project; the Trust is using its own resources.
According to National Medical Council regulations, a 600-bed hospital is mandatory for establishing a medical college. The state is simultaneously working on increasing the number of beds and improving ancillary infrastructure at IGM Hospital to benefit the public during this transition.
Addressing the critical need for more medical professionals, Sushanta Chowdhury revealed that Tripura currently has 1,189 doctors serving a population of approximately 40 lakhs, resulting in a doctor-to-population ratio of 1:3448, far below the World Health Organization’s recommended ratio of 1:1000.
With only 225 medical seats currently available in the state’s two medical colleges, there is an urgent need to expand medical education facilities to meet the growing demand for healthcare services.
To tackle this shortage, the Chief Minister has directed initiatives to recruit more doctors, including specialists and super specialists. The central government is also playing a crucial role by encouraging the use of government hospitals as teaching facilities for new medical colleges, as stipulated in Clause 25 of the Establishment of Medical Colleges Regulations, 1999.
This regulation allows state governments to partner with private entities to establish medical colleges using existing government hospitals.
Chowdhury cited several successful examples from across India, such as Kantipur Medical College in Mangalore and Dr. D.Y. Patil Medical College in Pune, which have utilized government hospitals as teaching facilities. He expressed optimism that this model would significantly enhance Tripura’s healthcare landscape.
Shantiniketan Medical College, operated by the Swaadheen Trust, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to use Bolpur Subdivision Hospital as its teaching hospital. This collaboration aims to enhance medical education by providing practical training for students.
Following Kerala’s model, the Tripura state government is also taking steps to allow private medical colleges to establish government medical colleges. The Swaadheen Trust has committed to adhering to all regulations and will secure the necessary approvals from the National Medical Commission (NMC). Moreover, the trust will deposit security money to the government.
Significantly, the trust will reserve seats for students living below the poverty line at the same fee structure as Agartala Government Medical College. Furthermore, 50% of the seats will be reserved for local students.
A formal MoU between the Swaadheen Trust and the Tripura government will be signed soon.
It is noteworthy that the state had previously allocated land to ILS Hospital almost free of cost to support healthcare development. With these initiatives, the state government is taking significant steps to improve the health services in Tripura.
(Tripura, Tripura News)
