NEW DELHI: The premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences is considering the feasibility of reviewing the user charges that have not been revised for the last over two decades.
The move comes after the Finance Ministry directed AIIMS to undertake a review and revise its user fees.
AIIMS has been presenting demands to the Government for additional allocation to the tune of Rs 300 crores, in the non-plan expenditures which are of recurring nature including salaries, consumables, maintenance and establishment expenditure every year.
The Ministry of Finance has observed that there is large deviation between the budget estimates and the revised estimates. Finance Ministry has, therefore, advised AIIMS to undertake a review of its user charges. They have not been revised since 1996," Deputy Director V Srinivas reportedly said.
Recently, a meeting was held by AIIMS Director in which the feasibility of revising the user charges was discussed.
At present, the AIIMS generates Rs 101 crores from user charges for OPD, diagnostic tests, radiology tests, in-patient care and room rentals.
In 2015, in a proposal to the standing finance committee, the AIIMS administration had proposed a hike of 20 to 30 per cent on charges for different tests and diagnostic procedures.
According to the prevailing rates, the cost of many routine tests at the institute is just Rs 10 or Rs 25.